Live From... Paris Fashion Week, Day 2

Balmain

With a defiant Sid Vicious belting out My Way on the soundtrack, Christophe Decarnin stood firm to the cultish signature he has forged at Balmain. Gone may be the power-shouldered military jackets or glitzy brocade coats, but in their place come a plethora of studded leather bikers sure to create just as much frenzied Balmania as the former.

The look: Screaming punk rock

Silhouette: Super-short or spray-on skinny

Key items: The leather jacket was the key piece, arriving in several options including a super-soft white leather biker, a black leather jacket with tux-style tails, or studded black bikers. Skinny jeans or leather pants with a turn-up at the calf; micro-shorts and hotpants; slashed T-shirts decorated with pins or moth-eaten tees; utility shirts; pieced leather corsets; white shawl-collared tux jackets; cut-off denim miniskirts; jean jackets; studded blazers

Colour: Strictly red, black, white and silver

Fabric & knit: Bleached, dyed, sprayed and destroyed denims, washed leathers, moth-eaten cotton T-shirt jersey

Print & pattern: Faded and bleached Stars and Stripes American flag motifs, over-painted red/white stripes on denim sleeves, red/black tie-dye, scribble and doodle graffiti, dirtied effects

Details & trims: Red/black sequin stripes, zip pockets, appliqué badges, crystals on jean-jacket shoulders and intermixed with an abundance of metal hardware - studs, spikes, stars and safety pins

Footwear: Simple black heeled court shoes with almond-shaped pointed toe, or high-heeled black lace-up boots with a wide cuff resting above the ankle

Accessories: Chain and padlock necklaces

Zac Posen

For his debut in the French fashion capital, Zac Posen came over all Parisian, with a collection undoubtedly inspired by the city's famed and feathered showgirls.

The look: The Feerie girls of the Moulin Rouge

Silhouette: Body-sculpted with flounces of feathers

Key items: Panelled second-skin pants and skirts, shaped to emphasise the curve of the hips; cropped feather jackets or peak-shouldered tweed edge-to-edge jackets; body-con dresses with twisted sections revealing a sheer sections - a similar motif was used for a top with diamond cutouts running down the torso; an asymmetrically twisted and wrapped one-shoulder all-in-one with a folded ruffle at the shoulder and volume at the hips; a sheer catsuit with burn-out feather motifs preserving modesty; a shapely LBD of stretch tulle with a feathered bib; red-carpet gowns with lace panels, peekaboo strapping and sheer skirts

Colour: Black and rouge with a touch of white and pale pink

Fabric & knit: Tulle, lace, sheer chiffons, satin, watery silks, tweed

Print & pattern: Moody degradés in grey/black, a swirling red/black marbling effect and a variety of feather prints including trompe l'oeil placement plumes and floating feathers on chiffon

Details & trims: Feathers - short and clipped or long and ticklish ostrich plumes; exposed corsetry boning; micro-pleated sheers in an Art Deco-style sunburst pattern; peekaboo strapping; contoured panelling; ruched tulle

Footwear: Skinny-strapped heeled sandals

Accessories: Silver chainmail necklaces

Balenciaga

It was rock 'n' roll all the way at Balenciaga, as Nicolas Ghesquière played a riff based on punky teddy-boy styling full of hardcore leather and plastic, tuxedos, and brothel-creeper shoes.

The look: 50s rock 'n' roll
Silhouette: Masculine/feminine with a punky youthful edge

Key items: Rocker biker jackets and cropped mannish pants came teamed with sleeveless backless shirts, or there was an alternative silhouette of biker gilets and short punky skirts, while boxy coats were carapace shaped. In a change of pace, Ghesquière teamed striped knits with cropped pants, sheer miniskirts, and added wet-look jeans into the mix. Dresses came short and one-shouldered, tuxedos layered over white shirts with exaggerated shirt-tail hemlines, and as a finale, the designer moved into a more futuristic look with the simplest one-shouldered shell tops and sheer skirts

Colour: A punkish palette of black and white with red and cobalt or camel. A sweeter note came through in pale pink and baby blue, worked into floral prints
Fabric & knit: Hardcore wet-look plasticised finishes, faux leather, real leather, lace, snakeskin, metallic sheers, wet-look sheers
Print & pattern: Large-scale dogtooth checks, a diffused dogtooth pattern on sheer, a spot print on glossy sheer shirtweights, a patchwork floral/foliage pattern for sleeveless shirts
Details & trims: Quilted yokes on jackets and gilets, exaggerated shirt-tail hems
Footwear: Flat mannish brothel creepers, fringed toeless shooties
Accessories: Balenciaga watches - a new launch this season, metal collar tips, grommet-trimmed hip belts


Nina Ricci

Peter Copping tapped into the trend for frills and lace with his latest spring/summer collection, full of girlish silhouettes that looked right for next season, while still staying well within the parameters of the house's DNA.
The look: Girl talk
Silhouette: Frothy femininity
Key items: It was flouncy short skirts, ruffled blouses and flirty frilled dresses all the way, mixed in with boxy Chanel-esque jackets, weightless lace skirts, sheer ruched tops, chunky knit cardigan jackets and a finale of short one-shouldered cocktail dresses. Skirts and bloomer shorts came with sash-tied paper-bag waists, while a breezy trench, a padded neon pink coat and ladylike tailored tweed suits added weight to the look.
Colour: A simple palette of black, white and deep cappuccino gave way to a delicious medley of almost neon-like brights, as chartreuse and fuchsia were layered with watermelon and purple, with a range of delicate colourwashed pales added a contrasting look
Fabric & knit: Delicate Chantilly lace, silk chiffon and organza worked alongside washed silks, crinkle silk, satin and summer tweeds with wafting feather trims. Knits offered an alternative, more down-to-earth appeal, coming as chunky textured cardigans
Print & pattern: Delicate watercolour florals and a splashy painterly engineered placement contrasted with a micro-spot print
Details & trims: Taped seams inside outerwear, plissé ruffles, organza flowers trimming the hemline of tweed skirts, guipure lace appliqués
Footwear: High Mary Janes, courts with X-strap detail, floral corsages as a trim
Accessories: Printed ankle-length gloves, pastel leather belts, long-strap shoulder bags, squashy clutch bags with appliqué flower trims


Ann Demeulemeester

A singular look from Ann Demeulemeester, who left her signature romantic gothic looks behind this season, in favour of a hardcore graphic silhouette that combined protective layering with a subtle sense of sex appeal.
The look: Armoured protection with a minimalist edge
Silhouette: Graphic constructivist

Key items: The fencing jacket ran through the collection as a key item to layer over funnel-necked tops and blouses, as a protective gilet over close-cropped tailored jackets, or even over biker-style silhouettes. Skirts were cut thigh-high - a new look for Demeulemeester - or came with swooshing high-low hemlines to layer over cropped stovepipe pants

Colour: A graphic palette of sharp black and white worked as solids or in pieced effects

Fabric & knit: Leather, washed leather, sheers, cottons

Print & pattern: A graphic black-and-white print on sheer Details & trims: Contrast binding, buckles

Footwear: High ankle boots, toeless shooties, strappy sandals

Accessories: Fencing jacket-inspired buckled corset belts

Rick Owens

            

Rick Owens has a well defined aesthetic - tailored leatherwear witha dark sensibility. But for summer 2011 he seemed to soften a little,with full-skirted maxidresses - albeit in stiff starched cotton - and afew softly draped silk pieces. It was a successful exploration of hissofter side.

The look: Monastic space tribes with subtle undertones of the Orient
Silhouette: Elongated, with floor-grazing lengths and high collars
Key items: Monastic maxidresses - either full tent shapeswith pleated volume or more structured flat-fronted styles with afishtail hem, worn under super-slim-cut leather jackets cut away belowthe bust and left long at the back, with short tight-fitting sleevesand stand-up collars. Elongated zip-through tunics tailored over thehips; kimono-shaped tops and fluidly draped pieces includingcape-backed bandeaus; a swingy minidress with draped folds and trapezetops; halterneck fishtail starched cotton gowns
Colour: Misty vapour greys and chalky whites, flax and putty-coloured neutrals, anchored with pine green and black
Fabric & knit: Leather, papery or starched cottons, silk crepe, cotton jersey
Details & trims: Pointed handkerchief and asymmetrichems, sculpted stand-up collars, sometimes pulled to one side,asymmetrical zips, halternecks with low cutaway backs, fan pleated tails
Footwear: Platform wedges with cutaway vamps and tufted chiffon cuffs or multi-straps tied in spiky knots
Accessories: Two-prong Oriental haircombs

Posted in: Ann Demeulemeester,Balenciaga,Balmain,Nina Ricci,Paris Fashion Week,PFW,womenswear,Zac Posen