London Fashion Week Feb 09: Christopher Kane's Feminine Blueprints

If Le Corbusier and Coco Chanel had a love child, Christopher Kane's A/W 09 collection would be the it.

Thick, black velvet ribbons on ivory organza formed the foundations for the Scottish designer's structured geometric designs that flirted between architecture and 1960's futurism yesterday afternoon.

As Kane said 'I wanted to achieve this black marker on paper look.' The collection was like looking at blueprints on fabric.

Back to basics in palette with ebony, ivoryand creams, the subdued tones were perfectly suited to the more modest London Fashion Week this year, in reflection of the economic situation. Rather than the in-your-face colours that have been seen in many collections in New York, such as Marc Jacobs, Kane was the atithesis by stripping down design to its velvety boned infrastructure.

With Vivienne Westwood watching on eagerly and Kanye West prepared to stand (mind you he was late) it was clear that Kane has many admirers. Beginning the show with a simple fawn cashmere cardigan and pencil skirt, the opening did not shock or break any rules but rather reaffirmed Kane's position as a great designer, although the British Fashion Council have already stated this by putting Kane in the New Generation: Fashion Forward Scheme.

The preppy style then progressed into the delicate, but structured, geometric sheath dresses that had the form and modernist style of a le Corbusier design or Mondrian painting as well as the feminine simplicity of a Chanel shift. Panelled, layered pieces were then followed by a taste of the 1960's 'futuristic' style with dresses that would look have looked as at home in the classic film 'Blow up' as they did on the runway in central London. Contrasting horizontal and vertical lamé stripes were woven together into a futuristic plaid in myriad shades.

'Bold, graphic and a bit poor, but really quite elegant. Poor and rich at the same time.'

Kane's view seems to sum up fashion week as a whole. He has achieved a balance between modesty and glamour without sacrificing anything. Rich details with simple structuring, a total opposite to the economic state, but works beautifully for Kane. The whole collection is wearable and even with the absence of the vibrancy and leathers of his S/S it is still innovative, proving that design is as effective in black and white as it is in technicolour.

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"Rebellious Classicism"

Marc Jacobs takes on New York with an Homage to Bygone Extravagance.

There was a sense of scaled down flamboyance at the Marc Jacobs fall 09 show at the NY State Armory on Monday 16th. No Sonic Youth or mirrored hallways to dazzle the audience, nor was there a celebrity audience to dazzle the press. It was simply the designs that were on offer, and the meandering catwalk allowed everyone to take a front row seat, or at least the fashion savy who were seated for the promt 8pm start, including Carine Roitfeld and Anna Wintour. So with everyone is a prime location, did the designs manage to hold their own?

Jacobs took the opportunity to return to the bygone era of 1980's New York with a collection that seemed to ignore 'crisis couture' with high hemlines and flamboyant colours. Despite the precarious financial situation the fashion world shockingly is not totally bankrupt and Jacobs made his own mark stating "Is all-black going to help the economy?" also saying backstage that the collection was an homage to "what New York used to be like before it was gentrified and such a boring place to live - when artists could make a living here." Perhaps this is the reason the designer spends the majority of his time in Paris now.












The collection certainly harked back to an era of excitement . Moving from trim, aqua peacoats to architectural floral bubble skirts and Balmainesque sculpted shoulders, Marc Jacobs took the eighties by storm encapsulating party girl to power dresser.
The show opened with smoky grey knits and sharp tailoring moving followed by floral leggings and modest patent pumps. Modesty ruled only in the accessories, which were scarse, Jacobs choosing to enhance each design with gravity defying quiffs and frizzy dos with David Bowie-esque Ziggy Stardust eye makeup. There seemed to be no rules, just expression. The striped pleat midi skirts with sequined shirts echoed elements of his S/S 09, yet the fall collection is far less opulent. Violet ruffled prom dresses and corseted lamé blouses mix together the classiness and brassiness of all things eighties. Cerise lined black tuxedo jackets over dresses that appear like ribbons unravelling followed by lace and net bustiers make reference to vintage Versace and Azzedine Alaia.



The revival of eighties colour and eccentrity is ever present however, there is no definitive theme of continuity to the pieces in the collection, each one seems a statement in its own right which has led to varied reviews. While Suzy Menkes praises Marc Jacobs for adopting the Obama "yes we can" enthusiasm and 'tapping into the exhuberance of youth' while the New York Times suggest that 'their is very little sense of enjoyment or relish in the clothes, qualities we associate with 80's dressing.' What Jacobs certainly does is retain a sense of vibrancy in a financial climate, particularly in America, that is distinctly sombre.

Insider Issues with the 'Fashion Outsider'

Less about what and more about why: the perfect equation for a conversation with blogger Susie Bubble.

The fashion blogging nation is growing every day heralding an array of media and fashion insider attention. Most recently the interest in internet cultures has manifested itself in the form of a seminar series at the London College of Fashion entitled ‘Fashion and the Internet’.
If you were able to attend the ‘Conversation with Susie Bubble’ with Dr Agnè s Rocamora on Wednesday 21st January, no doubt you would have thought it was worth cramming into the ‘intimate’ lecture room for the quite enlightening and entertaining talk.

Listening to the 25 year old Susie Bubble (a name given to her by classmates years ago, for ‘living in a bubble‘) it is clear that although her knowledge on the subject of fashion is extensive, her position in the market of journalism is one of uncertainty. Writing daily about anything new and exciting in the fashion world on her blog http://www.stylebubble.typepad.com/ she is a household name in the fashion world yet neither an insider or outsider in the industry. As Susie said herself, the internet “is like fast food. You can consume it all in minutes.” Susie details every movement infashion, but also her own personal movements, thoughts and ideas as well as outfit experiments.

So, with a blog that is part of the mass produced and untamed medium of the internet, the question is: can she be taken seriously?

“I received a message saying that 'I had no right to write or to be talking about fashion.' I looked up that HTML address and found out that it had come from Condé Nast.” Susie Bubble

Clearly not everyone believes that she has the ‘right to write’, but then again she is also invited to preview shows by Chanel; events that are only for bloggers, as well as invitations to Gucci’s UNICEF fundraiser and countless runway shows since she started her blog in 2006.

Voted ‘blogger of the year’ by Teen Vogue and featured in the Observer’s ‘most influential’ list, style bubble.com’s first-person-perspective musings may not enthral those in high places but does it matter when she has her number of hits exceeding 16,000 daily, ends up featured in top publications anyway and has a job at http://www.dazeddigital.com/? However, as she stated to Jefferson Hack ‘I’m somewhere outside the periphery of fashion.’ It is this periphery that all blogs seem to sit in, with the availability for anyone to publish their views on fashion however self-indulgent and with the prospect of a personal invitation to Chanel preview shows, why not blog? Rather than dissecting the content of Susie’s blog, the talk was more focused on why she blogs and what role they play in the fashion industry. To be honest though ,to warrant a talk in the first place, these internet pieces that multiply in the time it takes to refresh a page must make an impact. After all, you can never tell who is reading.

Don't miss out on the next seminars in this series at the London College of Fashion http://www.fashion.arts.ac.uk/5204.htm

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The view from the top

It seems only fitting that when discussing the attire of the USA's now most powerful woman, a few words from US Vogue's most powerful woman, Anna Wintour, would be more than appropriate to include:

"It wasn’t just that her choices projected a simpler, streamlined, more modern attitude, rejecting the ridiculous idea that the only way for a First Lady to dress is in the dreaded White House standard-issue uniform—the boxy, anonymous suit that always managed to look as appealing, and as comfortable, as armor. Instead, we have a woman who is as happy in newer, less obvious designer choices like Wu and Toledo (both, incidentally, Vogue/CFDA Fashion Fund finalists, which made my heart swell that little bit more with pride) as she is in J.Crew and the Gap. It’s inspiring to see our First Lady so serene and secure in her personal style."

(Wintour's full view can be read at http://www.style.com/vogue/clicktoview/2009/01/living-history/)

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Michelle Obama: Inaugaral Outfit

The question as to who will dress the first lady for her inaugaral outfit is answered as Michelle Obama enters the White House in a classic, conservative Isabel Toledo gold, yellow brocade shift dress with matching knee length over coat, teamed with teal pumps. Hope Greenburg, fashion editor of Lucky magazine commented that"It strikes just the right note for the occasion, special but classic. The silhouette is so 60's -- the sheath dress and a matching coat. It harkens back to Jackie, but the jewels around the neck make it today as opposed to looking retro." Today may mark a distinct change in American history, however it seems that Michelle Obama is holding on to classic lines and understated glamour with this design teamed with simple stud earrings, leaving the attention to fall solely upon her husband Barack. Her choice of the Cuban-born designer suggests that Michelle is linking with her husband in his desire to strengthen the relationship with Cuba.  She previously wore a black tunic dress from Toledo to a fundraiser in June 2008.
Whatever her perogative, I think she captures first-lady elegance wonderfully and perhaps we may see a new Jackie O style icon residing in the White House from now on, we can only wait and see.

Sometimes a breakdown is good for us!

The wild, racy nature of Vivienne Westwood's collections are taken down a notch in her recent musical debut. The Westwood 'Catwalk Breakdown' album is as romantic and unexpected as her S/S 09 collection. The classic lines of Billy Fury's 'Last Night was made for Love' are intertwined with the haunting melodies of Tchaikovsky's 'Waltz of the Flowers' and the classic harmony of Offenbach.

As Vivienne Westwood told www.vogue.com:
“Sometimes (the) music can just be sexy, it can let you relax, look at the clothes, put people into a fantastic mood. Then it might just have to swing back and lift you up to the final triumph of the fashion show.”

All too often the carefully selected pieces that the designers use for their collections are superceded by the clothes that they provide the soundtrack for. This album allows you to delight in the music without interuption. The CD sleeve is of course, classically Westwood where the disc nestles neatly between a quintessentailly Westwood pair of heaving bosoms and the iconic 'Campbell' platforms on the cover, it is clear that this album is a classic audio representation of Westwood's fashion in all it's audible glory. If that's not enough to convince then just buy it simply for Mae West's fantastically sassy 'Great balls of Fire' cover version. It's a perfect chance to own a piece of Westwood for under £15, what are you waiting for?

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Let your eyes girl be other Worldly...

Welcome to Mellow Fruitfullness you are all very welcome! This little site is dedicated to the snippets of fashion, literature and art that catch my eye, updating you on anything exciting going on in the busy city of London as well as around the world. Feel free to post anything that interests you, as it will most likely interest me too!