The lens of the fashion world has shifted to the couture, but we are still gleefully haunted by the Alexander McQueen Pre-Fall 2012 collection. Most of the time, words are easy to find when reflecting on the impact of a collection, but Sarah Burton has again left us utterly speechless. Insanely gorgeous. For some reason, we have an urge to go belt shopping…
Givenchy Pre-Fall 2012
As the Pre-Fall 2012 collections continue to roll out, we are seeing more and more of what we love most about solid, cogent design: directional shapes and silhouettes, bold graphics and and plain ol’ swoon-worthy dresses. Here, ten more looks that we will revisit many more times for inspiration.
Preen Pre-Fall 2012
Rochas Pre-Fall 2012
Celine Pre-Fall 2012
Peter Som Pre-Fall 2012
Rebecca Minkoff Pre-Fall 2012
Alexandre Herchcovitch Pre-Fall 2012
Stella McCartney Pre-Fall 2012
Givenchy Pre-Fall 2012
Prabal Gurung Pre-Fall 2012
Photos: Style.com
Pringle of Scotland Pre-Fall 2012
While the holiday insanity swirls around us, we have been finding a bit of sanctuary in the Pre-Fall ’12 collections. Here, our favorite looks that we really wish we could wear right now. Also, a special shout-out to two of our favorite late 90′s-early 00′s Supermodels, Kirsty Hume and Hannelore Knuts, who are featured in the Erdem and VPL collections, respectively. And yes, we did just capitalize Supermodel.
Erdem Pre-Fall 2012
Malandrino Pre-Fall 2012
Rachel Zoe Pre-Fall 2012
Diane von Furstenberg Pre-Fall 2012
Moschino Cheap and Chic Pre-Fall 2012
VPL Pre-Fall 2012
Donna Karan Pre-Fall 2012
3.1 Phillip Lim Pre-Fall 2012
Jason Wu Pre-Fall 2012
Photos: Style.com
Narciso Rodriguez Pre-Fall 2012
We might as well go on the record now as being skeptical about the fast-and-furious pace that designers and labels are expected to churn out gorgeous and inspired collections. 5 or 6 times a year (if you include Holiday, which some designers actually do), retailers and editors are given new collections to digest. The fashion girls in us are never one to look away from a shiny, brand-new set of looks, but the part of us that supports both new and established talent feels deep sympathy for designers from whom too much is never enough when it comes to the insanely whacked retail schedule that they are forced to operate within. All of that being said, we found lots of looks from the Pre-Fall ’12 collections that we love. Here are 10 of them, for the die-hard fashion girls in all of us…
Zero + Maria Cornejo Pre-Fall 2012
Giulietta Pre-Fall 2012
Theyskens Theory Pre-Fall 2012
Jenni Kayne Pre-Fall 2012
Doo.Ri Pre-Fall 2012
Helmut Lang Pre-Fall 2012
BCBG Max Azria Pre-Fall 2012
Ports 1961 Pre-Fall 2012
Kelly Wearstler Pre-Fall 2012
Photos: Style.com
Paris-based label Calla is one of our favorite go-to sources of amazingly beautiful prints. While we love a hard-edged graphic as much as anyone, we always marvel at designer Calla Haynes’ ability to inject just the proper amount of organic authenticity into her digitally-produced prints. We saw this film of her SS12 collection and we are seriously wishing that it was April and not December. The graphics, of course, are sublime, but its the way that she has re-imagined the knit belt that has us particularly intrigued. The film was styled by Leith Clark, and has us re-considering our “no one label from head-to-toe” edict. Gorgeous. We’ve already watched this about 10 times…
Case Study #22, Pierre Koenig, 1959-1960
Case Study houses have been on our “if I win Lotto” wish list for a long, long time. The 8 original Case Study houses were built as cost-effective housing for soldiers returning to California from WWII and showcase the work of some of the most influential architects of the Mid-Century Modern era. Others were built after that period as well, and all feature the same spare economy of line, the strong play of the horizontal and the vertical and the airy, hyper-modern minimalism that pretty much sums up late 1950′s product design. We love this idea as it applies to fashion- where a stripped-down vibe can let the construction and the geometrics of a piece take center stage.
Case Study House #21, Pierre Koenig, 1958
Case Study #9, Entenza House, Charles Eames and Eero Saarinen, 1949
Ann-Sofie Back Atelje, SS12
Jean-Pierre Braganza, SS12
Graeme Armour, SS12
Celine Luggage Tote
Helen Frankenthaler, Untitled
The fluid, super-saturated colors of Abstract Expressionist painter Helen Frankenthaler are a major reference for us as we try to look past the coming winter to what we want to wear from the spring collections. The way that Frankenthaler integrates colors and yet keeps them separate at the same time is impactful and gorgeous. We love the idea of working a singular hue to full effect or artfully combining a couple of colors in a chic mashup.
Helen Frankenthaler, Southern Exposure, 2005
10 Crosby Derek Lam SS12
Proenza Schouler SS12
Helen Frankenthaler, Mountains and Sea, 1952
Alice + Olivia SS12
Emilio de la Morena SS12
Chadwick Bell SS12
Runway photos: Style.com
Jil Sander SS12
The spring collections offer a multitude of repeating narratives that serve as a checklist that we use to process them each season. Beautiful lightweight dress, check. Flirty skirt, check. A tasteful short, check. But the one touchstone that we always look for in the spring collections is a truly directional print. We won’t turn up our nose at a classic floral, but it better be interesting and well-considered for the here and now. We looked back through the SS12 collections to round up five of the prints that caught our eye. Clearly, not an exhaustive list, but one that highlights a few of the strongest prints of the season.
Prada SS12
Cacharel SS12
Duro Oluwu SS12
Etro SS12
Photo: Style.com
By our count, we probably looked at about 120 collections during the last show season, and somehow we missed Manish Arora’s spring 2012 collection. That might have been a blessing in disguise, because we were happy to have been able to watch it with fresh, non-jaded eyes. Arora has a special place in our heart as a designer who seems a bit kooky on the surface, but upon further inspection, you find impeccable construction and an overall aesthetic that is unique and rests firmly in the 21st century. For spring 2012, Arora manages to deftly weave together futuristic themes, girly sparkle and drop dead gorgeous prints. Check out the video of the show above. We’ve already watched it abut 10 times..
Damir Doma is an emerging designer that we have our eyes trained on. His classically-inclined SS12 collection is the type of quietly lyrical lineup that makes us remember why we make the effort to sort through all of the hype that often accompanies Fashion Week. The pared-down styling and beauty of this show was the perfect foil to the billowy silhouettes for the modern-day Greek goddess. The gold/mustard and navy story towards the end of the show is inspiration for a color combination that we can’t wait to try out for ourselves.
