PARIS...Warrior women have been on the minds of many designers for the past few seasons, and Vivienne Westwood is among them with her F/W 08 collection. Enlisting the help of elementary school students, who drew the illustrations covering most of the pieces, she addressed issues of global warming by asking for depictions of futuristic eco-crusaders. An inspiring look at hand
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PARIS...Belgian designer Ann Demeulemeester's brand of louche rock and roll has made her a cult favorite with many fashion forward fans, and this season she continues to explore some of the textures and silhouettes introduced during the last few collections. Bohemian grunge were the references, reflected in the lace up military boots, wide brimmed '70's hats, mottled nouveau tie-dye and
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PARIS...Viktor & Rolf are obviously known for their theatrics and the conceptual nature of their designs. Last season's staggering lighting rig runway display, which some models literally staggered underneath, was one of the most difficult to decipher. For F/W 08 the ideas were bit easier to swallow, such as t-shirts emblazoned with an assertive "No!" in a reaction to the
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Nicolas Ghesquière struck fashion gold once again with his F/W 08/09 collection for Balenciaga. Last season’s short, structured florals were forsaken for something deeper, darker and more refined. It was a delicate balance of ladylike austerity (jewelry as collars and cuffs!) with futuristic tendencies (liberal use of technical fabrics, neoprene, even rubber) The collection was condensed to only 34 looks,
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PARIS...Tao Kurihara, protégé of Comme des Garçons founder Rei Kawakubo, struck out with her eponymous sub-label a few years ago, and has since matured enough so that neither Kawakubo nor Juyna Watanabe even views the collection before it comes down the runway. For F/W 08, the Tao line veered slightly away from the usual head-to-toe heaviness and introduced a more
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PARIS...Jefen for F/W 08 showed a bevy of wing-shoulder leather jackets, flirty fur caplets, and over sized cables knits made of lush cashmere. Sure, these artful exteriors were paired with super-short flippy skirts and short shorts, but the bottom line is that everything was glossy, cool and wearable. As usual, Jefen's mix of sport and chic was right on
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PARIS...Undercover's F/W 08 collection demonstrated a hybridization between Japanese avant garde and American casual street wear. Inserted was a sense of alternative Japanese cool transformed into sweat ensembles, parkas and motorcycle pants, that were zippered and collaged with leather, knit, waxed cotton, and buckles. One of the coolest collections of the season for a new style of active
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PARIS...The husband and wife team of A.F. Vandervorst stuck to their usual hard versus soft duality. Nearly every look began with a stark black or white button-down and cotton leggings to match. For the soft alternative, they offered oversize Fair Isle cardigan coats, shiny puffer jackets and a cozy active inspired ensemble fit for the gym.
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PARIS...With the soundtrack to The Graduate playing in the background (Here's to you, Mrs Robinson) John Galliano remarked that for Dior F/W 08/09 “pure glamor,” was his starting point, offering up the iconic looks of Jackie Kennedy and Rachel Welch, big hair! bright color, loud geometric prints and huge hats courtesy of Stephen Jones that recalled the "optimism and opulence"
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PARIS...A.F. Vandevorst attendees got their 5 seconds of fame at the Musee de Metallos on Sunday night in the 11th arrondissement. Upon entering the venue cameras kept a watchful eye on those making way to their seats, the models backstage, even the runway itself, recording everyone's every move, with 14 video screens projecting images of various sizes from within
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PARIS...Rick Owens' new collection was a testament to his adept couture workmanship. The architectural shapes came about because Owens "lifted so directly from Le Bontecou (the 1960s American sculptor). Items of special note were shearling leg-warmers that laced at the back of the knee and belled out unzipped above lofty wedge boots as well as the gorgeous grey minks that
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Paris Fashion Week kicked off to a rock 'n' roll start with a heady mix of jeweled and sparkling animal prints at Balmain. As the models walked to the beats of Billy Idol, one thing became clear: the '80s are still a key inspiration. The color palette was an edgy combination of red, black and silver, with jewel-encrusted snakes embellishing
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PARIS...Designer Christophe Decarnin made a strong statement for overt sexiness this season, with both groupie minidresses and punk rock hallmarks like plaid and zippers. A strong palette of silver, red, white and black kept things from getting too schizophrenic, and some sweeter pieces like abbreviated, pleated and embellished skirts lightened the mood. Separated into individual pieces, the full-on attitude of
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MILAN... in comparison to their spring offering this was a rather toned-down collection from Dolce and Gabbana. There were at least a couple of strong themes present including a nod to the glam rock looks of London in the '70s; that meant poor-boy sweaters, flat caps and long fur vests, also some scarf print skirts that recalled YSL's peasant styles
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MILAN...Isn't it why the fashion flock comes to Milan season after season? To watch a show like this, from Donatella Versace, to sit back, revel in the colors, the shapes, the short lengths! Imagine for a half hour that you live that lifestyle (have that body!). Her collection has been so subdued of late and this season was no exception,
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