It goes without saying that the collection or particularly the concept and the vibe would be inadequate without the right accessories and suitable beauty. This season, Chanel's accessories department deserves to be greeted with the most enthusiastic ovation. Each piece of jewelry is a massive combination of charm bracelets with random pendants and chains which adds spontaneity to the looks. The charms are just... charming - a complex yet correct touch to the clothes. I do not have much to comment on the bangles for not seeing close enough.
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| Freja Beha Erichsen |
I can sense that most of you will never agree with Karl on these boots but in this very context, for this very concept, the design is not completely wrong, at last. Slouchy, wrinkled, scrunched-up, high-heeled boots add a button-up feel (which I think you've seen quite enough in the overall photos), making each look chunkier, wilder in an sophisticatedly awkward manner.
Messily-hung bedhead has never been seen at Chanel's shows but I'm quite liking it. It conveyed the wildness but not the image of a lion. Soft eyes and cheeks, a strong red lip with nails to match is this season's formula. Humourously, I associate each model to an untamed-natured (hair), jungle beautiful (eyes and lips) girl predictably with wild behavior, wearing brilliantly-adorned, sleek, sumptuous clothes.
So Young Kang Siri Tollerod
Dorothea Barth Jorgensen Abbey Lee Kershaw
Hanne Bruening Freja Beha Erichsen
If you're wondering which products were in use:
Complexion:
PRO LUMIÈRE Professional Finish Makeup
POUDRE UNIVERSELLE LIBRE Natural Finish Loose Powder
ÉCLAT LUMIÈRE Highlighter Face Pen
CORRECTEUR PERFECTION Long Lasting Concealer
Eyes:
LES 4 OMBRES Quadra Eye Shadow in Enigma
LE SOURCIL DE CHANEL Perfect Brows
Lips:
LE CRAYON LÈVRES Precision Lip Definer in Carmin
ROUGE COCO Hydrating Crème Lip Colour in Rivoli
Nails:
LE VERNIS Nail Colour in Rouge Fatal (launching in October 2010)
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So I guess it's time for a sum. For the season's major historical inspirations, Karl went mostly for the Twenties and Sixties as he revealed. You can see the tendency towards convenience of the roaring Twenties: no red-carpet, floor-sweeping things (except for the bride gown's train) but knee-length and calf-length instead. Short flappers are inspired by the 60s - the decade of modernity aspiration. Considerable weight got added to the clothes, creating a visual effect on them. For the tailoring, adoration goes to the structure of sleeves, shoulders (which have put Chanel's iconic suits to a new silhouette) and knee-length blockish fitted skirts; the pleat makes awkward and stiffly swingy flare which, to me, is not only no more ugly but very well-intended. For the detailing and handmaking, my only opinion is that everyone at the atelier should be honored for their works: the appliqué, the embroidery, the beading, the sequin technique... under the atelier's fine execution and diligent labour and along with each of their excellent accomplishments, the designer's artistic intention was step by step realized into incredibly exquisite masterpieces. The concept of Leo was creatively conveyed; the watchers can always differentiate Chanel's lion from others and that makes sense because the image of lion has been being repeated. To me, the vibe and the looks generate a surprising intimacy, I find myself somewhere close to the nature of those Leo girls.
The luxe play has never ceased to be dramatized by Karl at the house of Chanel. Fascinating chromatic array, dizzy material mix-and-match, craftsmanship to die for... they all serve to tell the story through garments - the story under the sign of Leo. The collection is nothing but folkiness and warrior-likeness, wildness and royalty, opulence and richness. For many, it sounds like the pieces are going to sell in no time and like excessive wearability is degrading Haute Couture. To the aggressive question "Is this at all Haute Couture ?", my answer is a humble, plain yes. Here is some words from a tFS member that will clarify my approval:
I think years of Dior over-the-top presentations of show-pieces that are never meant to be worn in real life (or only after extensive modifications) and the invasion of Haute Couture looks on the Hollywood red-carpets have made people forget that there are still real women who wear Haute Couture in everyday situations. Actually, there are more and more of them. These women don't need to be wearing the price tag of the clothes on their back. They pay for the quality (something that can never be fully judged just by looking at the garment but by actually wearing it), the exclusivity, and yes, the designs
You find the collection wearable and too wearable to be exclusive ? See, the elongation and bulk of the clothes pose a challenge to many bodies, so hesitation to buy is possible. Some pieces for PR are understandable but there is no complete sacrifice of art for sale profit. "If people want to be liked for what they did, they should stop." - said Karl Lagerfeld(Harumi @ tFS)
At Haute Couture Spring Summer, he shot back to a suggestion of futurism of the 2010 ("I hate that, I don't believe in avant-garde clothes for a future that will never happen. Fashion is always now"). In Haute Couture Fall Winter interview, he advocated the vision of future in the Sixties ("In the 60s, everything was short. It was supposed to be modern, for the future"). What did he attempt to express ? Or is it just his whimsical preferences that change through time ? Is that "hate the future of the present, embrace the future of the past" he wanted to say ? The question is still open and I am still in need of seeing more to say anything for sure. There are no fashion shows like Chanel's shows. Of course the collection is usually hit and miss but once a show comes, it doesn't just go. It stays and stays for the sake of provoking thoughts.
.The End.
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Float Ho.
Float Ho.
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