Top Ten Collections: Fall 2011 Ready-to-Wear

Alexander Wang
 

After a couple of collections That erred too far on the experimental side of edgy, Alexander Wang was back in peak form for Fall, teaming a sexy, Streetwise attitude with a new sense of luxury. His bomber-jacket poncho Furs hybrids and boyfriend-guaranteed to fly out of his SoHo store opened just set the season's bold outerwear movement in motion. Trend-wise, his mink sandals proved equally prescient. And he gets bonus points for his dressed-down dress-up clothes, ESPECIALLY the peach mohair sweater and matching bias-cut, slit silk skirt.

Balenciaga
 

There's no one like Balenciaga's Nicolas Ghesquière for changing fashion's collective eye, but this season he mixed the avant-garde with the accessible to brilliant effect. Perhaps only the bravest will venture to don one of his knitted faux leather jackets, but everything else he showed landed high on the wearability meter—from the sporty color-blocked tunics worn over slim track pants to the archive-inspired sculptural coats. And if you're wondering what next season's statement skirt will be, look no further than Aline Weber in exit 1.  

Bottega Veneta
 

Paper-shredder hems, lace stencils, hand-dyed silks, overlays—all those painstaking details went into Tomas Maier's dresses this season, but he finessed them in such a manner that the results were more couture than crafty, and drop-dead gorgeous to boot. If the silhouettes said 1960's, the way the designer harnessed the artisanal skills of the Bottega Veneta studios ensured that his cocktail frocks were as modern as they come. 

Celine
 

"Fast, strong, powerful." That was Phoebe Philo backstage, talking about her unlikely Fall inspiration, cars. Those words could also serve as a spot-on description of her Celine collection. We'd add another adjective to the mix: "essential," because that's the feeling her silhouette-elongating, second-skin turtlenecks and tapered, ankle-zip pants gave the women in her crowd this season. As for the coats—streamlined dusters, color-blocked furs, upholstery vinyl jackets—they can best be summed up as follows: "hard to pick just one." 

Givenchy
 

Givenchy's Riccardo Tisci is hot, and not just because he appears to be first in line for the Dior job left vacant by his former LVMH colleague John Galliano. With Bettie Page and Amanda Lear as muses, Tisci played up his subversive streak for Fall, sending out sheer pencil skirts topped by patent peplums and sweatshirts stamped with either black panthers or pinup girls. The effect was hard yet soft, aggressive yet fragile, and as darkly glamorous as anything we saw this season. 

Haider Ackermann
 

Leonard Cohen and his love song "A Thousand Kisses Deep" may deserve a cut of the Fall sales, but no show moved the fashion flock more convincingly than Haider Ackermann's did this season. Why so persuasive, soundtrack aside? Ackermann's sublime color sense, for one. And for another, the gorgeous way he drapes and sculpts everything from silk to suede. This isn't easy fashion, and we're grateful for that. Ultimately, what enraptures us is his unwavering, straight-from-the-heart, and increasingly sophisticated vision. 

Marc Jacobs
 

Out went the 1970's glamorama of Spring, and in CAME restraint-in all senses of the word. Marc Jacobs' collection womanly hugged the body, yet left barely an inch of flesh exposed. But you could not call it for one second Prim-nots with all Those polka dots or the fetishy rubber (which the designer would Revisit to entertainingly Provocative if less mysterious effect at Louis Vuitton). And, to be sure, Those car-finish paint accessories Will have fans kneeling at his feet.

Marni
 

Minimalism from Marni? Not exactly, but Consuelo Castiglioni did show off a more disciplined side this season, and with utterly charming results. Jackets and skirts matched instead of clashed; what's more, The Octagon print that dominated the collection (and the runway decor) was more subtle than the patterns this house has tended to prefer in the past. But That does not mean there Was not color: Castiglioni showed one of the season's loveliest Furs, an emerald green and brown mink and beaver Belted coat over a camel and coral dress. 

Miu Miu
 

Miuccia Prada wrapped up the Fall season with a bow at Miu Miu. Make That a bow tied at the hip of a pretty, flower-printed dress of a 1940's extraction. This collection of modern vintage dresses looked tailor-made for Starlets Hailee Steinfeld and Mila Kunis, WHO sat front-row in what Had to be the location of the season, Paris' Palais d'iena. But the gold cat-eye sunglasses heels and glitter-dipped Will have a life well beyond the red carpet. 

Valentino
 

Reinventing a label as Venerable at Valentino's, and while the designer is still alive to watch, is no easy feat. But Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pier Paolo Piccioli have been quieting naysayers almost from the get-go, and no one Could argue with the way Their Fall collection married the house's signature romance with Modernity. Cue the studs That dotted the front of a double-face cashmere coat or the lace That was spliced ​​with leather for a strapless dress. This duo knows That the way forward is to balance respect for the house codes with a healthy dose of irreverence. 

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Spring Fashion Runway – Miu Miu Spring 2011 RTW Collection

 

When asked why “American Idol” was the opening song to the  show and why the runway was red like a dance floor, Miuccia Prada replied that she was thinking about everyone’s obsession with being famous. And if it’s stars we’re talking about, then let’s see some stars: the collection is abundant in big star-shaped prints. Although the overall aspect may be a little careless and with unflattering shapes, the details are actually quite appealing. Bright colors, extremely detailed heels, with buckles and laces altogether, swan and plant prints, as well as an impeccable make up for the models (dark eyes, red lips, porcelain skin) make this collection stand out.

None of the satin dresses are shorter than the knee, or too much below it. Combined with very wide shoulder leather jackets, they bring out enormous contrast. Colors are also elements that create contrast : black and red, silver and green, yellow and black, blue and white. There is a retro feel, mixed with courage, as it often happens on the runway. Models like Arizona Muse (opening), Freja Beha Erichsen, Ginta Lapina, Siri Tollerød, Jac, Abbey Lee Kershaw and Lindsey Wixson gave their best to show this collection on the runway. If you want to see the entire collection, you can do so on style.com. 

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Andrew Gn Fhasion Show

FALL 2010
Ready to Wear

PARIS, March 7, 2010

The return of minimalism may be setting the agenda elsewhere, but you didn't expect Andrew Gn to abandon his signature embellishments, did you? Inspired by a Louis XV commode in his Paris apartment, part of his collection of antique furniture, and a Montesquieu book, Lettres Persanes, Gn's Fall collection had an eighteenth-century look, albeit with a twenty-first-century spin. He called it "modern rococo."

The rococo element came through in the form of narrow jackets with stand-up collars and double rows of silver buttons marching up the front. It was also present in a re-embroidered cut velvet coat with passementerie trimming at the cuffs and in a bustier gown made in a re-edition of a vibrant teal and violet floral velour de sable. Then there was all the embroidered leather scrollwork at the necklines of dresses and shoulders of coats, the oversize silver belt buckles, the densely beaded belts. As for the modern touches? Those included Gn's technical fabrics and innovative techniques—a microfiber satin that resists wrinkles for a ruffled lapel, and leather smocking trimming the edge of a cropped jacket. But the most obvious twenty-first-century element was the ultrashort length of the ruched jersey cocktail dresses. All that leg, not to mention the cutouts under the bust, would surely have made a lady of the court blush.

If those looked like tough sells with the designer's own ladylike clientele, there were plenty of other frills to seduce his customers in a collection that mostly stayed within their—and Gn's—comfort zone.

SPRING 2010
Ready to Wear

PARIS, October 4, 2009

"There's no big theme, nothing intellectual, but I am pronouncing the end of this bloody recession," Andrew Gn said backstage, pointing out that sell-throughs in the States have been up since Labor Day. Fortified by that little bit of good news, he sent out a Spring collection with as many lavish embellishments as ever. There was no scaling down here, or in the client-heavy crowd. The only thing that rivaled the colorful gems and metallic embroidery on the runway was the bling on Gn's socialite customers in the front row.

Jeweled embellishments accenting the waist or the shoulders were the through-line of a collection that embraced everything from white guipure lace and organza tops (youthful with a pair of silk faille shorts) to a sleek black moiré le smoking (less louche than the YSL original, but still sexy). Slender sheaths in "patio prints" based on upholstery fabric from the fifties and sixties should appeal to the designer's artier fans, while the gowns in notice-me shades of violet, teal, and jade were no doubt made with his party girls in mind. There was an almost random, something-for-everyone quality to this unrepentantly luxe show. These days, though, that's probably smart business for a small brand like Gn's.

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Akris Fhasion Show

FALL 2010
Ready to Wear

Paris, March 7, 2010

Picking up where his smart pre-collection left off, Albert Kriemler's Fall lineup was focused on languid, seventies-ish tailoring and outerwear with a sportif sensibility. The lean, spare silhouette of his suits—elongated jacket, high-waisted flared trousers—provided an opportunity to showcase the fine fabrics that Akris' St. Gallen mills specialize in: Prince of Wales checks, houndstooths, tweeds, and plaids, all in the supplest cashmere. And it doesn't get any more luxe than Kriemler's long-sleeved blouse in a taupey-gray sheared astrakhan. As subtle as that fur and those menswear cashmeres were, his leathers were vibrant: a trim, to-the-body sleeveless dress in cassis, a fitted double-breasted coat in plum. As for the sportier fare, you're never going to see a straight-up down parka here. Kriemler's came in camel hair with drawstrings on the sleeves and across the torso and back to adjust the fit.

Ornamentation only entered the picture for evening, but it remained understated: Trapezoidal black crystals adorned the sheer shoulders of a black double-face long dress; the bodice of a strapless cocktail number was stitched with smooth feathers.

If Kriemler got carried away, it was with his bags—not with the totes themselves, which are as finely made as they were when they debuted last season, but in the sheer number of them on the runway. In the end, though, they didn't detract from this well-considered, elegant collection.

SPRING 2010
Ready to Wear

Paris, 23 March 2010

Albert Kriemler has designed his first-ever handbag collection for Akris, and his Spring clothes served as a well-considered minimalist canvas upon which to launch it. A few coats and dresses were made from leather that was scissored into narrow trapezoids, then re-glued for a geometric effect. But for the most part, Kriemler dialed down the sometimes overwrought fabric treatments from Fall and got back to the spare, clean lines that the Swiss company has been known for.

For day, that meant layered fine-gauge silk sweaters, sleekly tailored coat-dresses, and pantsuits with cropped jackets, elongated tees, and tapered knit pants. A sporty element came through via a gray laminated parka inset with athletic mesh and zip-front, blouson-back dresses. For evening, Kriemler was thinking streamlined. Long gray gowns draped gracefully from asymmetric shoulders, and a tall column of jersey came inset with inverted triangles of tulle at the neckline, front and back.

As for the bags? It's a measure of the company's commitment that Akris bought a horsehair factory before launching its accessories. Logo-less save for the trapezoidal zipper pulls, the results stand apart from the hardware-heavy styles currently popular. Showing large bags can turn your runway into merch fest, but Kriemler avoided that fate by producing a range as subtle as his clothes.

PRE-FALL 2010
Ready to Wear

NEW YORK, January 18, 2010

Removing the pressure of a runway show can free up a designer to do his best work. That's what's happened to Albert Kriemler at Akris for pre-fall. Focusing on traditional yet timely shapes—like the trench, shrunken double-breasted jackets and high-waisted, full-legged trousers, and capes—he let the luxe fabrics that the Swiss label is famous for do all the talking. And speak to his patrician-class customers these materials will: the double-face cashmeres, the bonded leathers, the buttery suedes. His black wool tweed pantsuit qualifies as one of the sharpest of the season, but it wasn't all boardroom material. Akris has its sporty side, too; one smart highlight among the off-hours looks was a knit poncho (with sleeves, so it stays put) teamed with matchstick-thin pants.

RESORT 2010
Ready to Wear

NEW YORK, June 26, 2009

Akris is a name on everybody's lips these days because these are clothes that seem especially right for the times. Beautifully made and trend-resistant, they're the very definition of investment dressing. Albert Kriemler wanted his Resort collection to be a feel-good one—literally. To that end he focused on fabric development, creating featherweight jersey for smocked dresses that softly caress the body. A neat chiffon bodysuit—worn with a tailored coat and jeans—had a wafting neckline. Giving shape to these light fabrics were tucked sleeves that resembled lobster tails—a good thing, it turned out, when worked into jackets and a galaxy-print dress.

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A.F. Vandevorst Fhasion Show

FALL 2010
Ready to Wear

PARIS, March 4, 2010

Save for a pair of unfortunate face harnesses (why?) and a few perplexing corrugated-cardboard vests, Filip Arickx and An Vandevorst took a much more real-world approach than they did last season, and the collection was all the better for it.

Traveling familiar terrain, they turned out structured and pieced jackets and vests riveted together with metal bolts—they were subtler than they sound—and paired them with fluid, full pants or draped jersey skirts and leggings, which were tucked into thigh-high boots with articulated knees. Everything was monochrome—beige, wine, plum, fuchsia—except the black numbers. Black shirtdresses came in an abstract chalkboard print (blackboards and cardboard being the designers' twin obsessions for Fall), and drapey black cowl-neck sweaters were covered in actual chalk dust. As one model did her front-of-runway pivot, a pouf of white powder came off her.

Toward the end, Arickx and Vandevorst sent out an otherwise plain button-front shirt with dozens of pieces of chalk held in place by rows of holsters. It was a funny, light moment, although it ultimately evoked bullets and guns. Were the husband-and-wife duo offering a "Make education, not war" pitch? Could be. But the important message is that they are back on track, updating the kind of basics that have potential in the stores.

SPRING 2010
Ready to Wear

PARIS, October 1, 2009

With transparency and visible lingerie shaping up as a couple of Spring's biggest trends, An Vandevorst and Filip Arickx are, for better or worse, in their element. They didn't invent innerwear as outerwear—that somewhat dubious honor probably goes to Madonna and Jean Paul Gaultier—but it is a significant aspect of their oeuvre, and tonight they worked it like nobody's business. Pausing at a wind machine at the back of the runway, the models' sheer, blousy nude shirtdresses and slips fell off one shoulder to expose the body casts they wore underneath, while flesh-toned stockings left their briefs visible. The casts, which were bolted, not sewn, together from stiff, papery fabric, gave structure to the collection's soft, floaty fabrics, but they were a strange motif: You wondered what place, if any, there is for them in real life. The way the models' pants were stuffed into the tops of sheer hose was a bit of a puzzle, too. Why hide your work? From a two-tone wrap trench with a trio of substantial leather belts to a soigné blue chiffon blazer tucked into a narrow pencil skirt, there were some timely pieces on the runway. Unfortunately, they were mostly obscured by heavy-handed styling tricks.

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Dolce & Gabbana Fashion Show

Dolce & Gabbana
FALL 2010
Ready-to-Wear

MILAN, February 28, 2010

When you strip away the facade and the fandango of fashion, what's left that matters? In many ways, those soul-searching questions are the subtext of the season, as the industry strives to re-anchor itself in fundamental values after a decade spent sucking up to celebrities and, increasingly, pumping out overpriced pseudo luxury made in China. In Milan, Dolce & Gabbana marshaled their response to the call for authenticity and a reconnection with every woman who's been a frustrated, alienated shopper over the past few years: Simply, yet movingly, they showed their classics, and how they make them.

In a video, Domenico Dolce was seen expertly running tailor's tacks into the lapel of a jacket in the studio—as he learned at the knee of his Sicilian tailor father—while Stefano Gabbana sketched, took measurements, and finished one of the curvaceous Italianate sex-bomb dresses the pair made their own 20 years ago. Alone, those scenes could have been self-aggrandizing, but the real kicker was the way the designers handed over the spotlight to the skilled, white-coated women and men in their ateliers who craft their product.

At the end, as at the Marc Jacobs show in New York, it had hard-bitten members of the audience running backstage with tears in their eyes. Dolce & Gabbana are facade maintainers and fandango-dancers with the best of them, but they hit a nerve in making the information in this show intimate and personal, as well as instantly available across the globe via live streaming. Perhaps the level of that exposure cuts out the need for too much explanation of the looks they put out. Aficionados will note the very new: the fact that quite a large proportion of the dresses and suits were knitted. But what really matters? That what Dolce & Gabbana does remains, immaculately, the same—and there's evidently still so much enjoyment and passion in the making of it.

DOLCE and GABBANA Runway Fashion Photos
Fall 2008 Milan Men's Collection

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