JEDI FASHION

I finally made it for an overdue manicure and pedicure, which meant down time to flip through my magazines.  (The backed-up stacks had gotten really tall).

Well, this certainly caught my eye:

Jean Paul Goode's brilliant Star War's concept for Harper's Bazaar this month.  

Flourescent bulbs standing in for light sabers was a stroke of genius.  And it looks like Charlotte Gainsbourg and Nicholas Ghesquière are thoroughly enjoying their Jedi duel.   I suppose the real "hats off" is to Ghesquière, for making Darth Vader's head gear worthy of Balenciaga.

Would you wear this Balenciaga hat?  Or only to a Star Wars Convention?

LANVIN'S FALL 2011 VIDEO

I had been enjoying the double trouble Lanvin campaign in the magazines.  I didn't realize there was actually a video, shot by Steven Meisel, accompanying it.




It won't win dance awards, but it is rather amusing, particularly when Alber Elbaz joins the fun towards the end.  As always, we can also simply appreciate Lanvin's feminine glamor.

THE MODELISTE

I stumbled upon this fascinating video of the work behind the scenes of a couturier.  The Modeliste translates the 2-dimensional sketch of a designer into a 3-D, real life outfit.  The translations by Nicolas Caito are beautiful!


Video from style.com



This makes me appreciate the art of couture, and even just old-fashioned dressmaking (of which I have not talent!) even more.

BALENCIAGA AND SPAIN

Looking at Nicholas Ghesquiere's geometric designs for Balenciaga these days, one might forget the Spanish origins of the house of Balenciaga.

Balenciaga Fall 2011
from style.com

But upon closer look, these modern designs hint at Cristobal Balenciaga's couture house from long ago.

Balenciaga Fall 2011
shoe detail
from style.com

Design and costume exhibits seem to be the current rage these days at museums.  Over here at San Francisco's De Young Museum, "Balenciaga and Spain" is currently on exhibit.

Hamish Bowles, of European Vogue, has put together a study of Cristobal Balenciaga, his origins, and the influence of Spanish culture on his designs.  The photos below suggest the Torero to me:

"Balenciaga and Spain"
from the exhibit at the De Young Museum
photos from deyoung.famsf.org

Balenciaga was a creative genius.  He trained and mentored noted designers like Emanuel Ungaro, Courreges, and Givenchy.  And when you see his architectural designs, seemingly ahead of his time,

Balenciaga abstract evening ensemble, 1967
from Balenciaga archives

you appreciate what he did for fashion and couture.  Fortunately, Ghesquiere has also infused the label with cutting edge designs, like his "Lego" shoes.  Would Cristobal approve?

Nicholas Ghesquiere for Balenciaga
"Lego" platform shoes
from style.com

This is another one on my list of exhibits to see ...

PARIS HAUTE COUTURE WEEK 2011

Paris hailed its (sadly diminishing) tradition of Haute Couture this past week.  Haute Couture is, by definition, not Pret-A-Porter.  Haute goes beyond everyday fashion.  Designers use it as a venue to push their creative visions to the extreme.

So, while we did see the typically diaphanous and peachy concoctions for Spring,

Valentino, Spring Couture 2011
note Butterfly choker

Karl Lagerfeld for Chanel,
Spring Couture 2011
See the black Victorian-style choker

the real visual delight of Haute Couture came from Jean Paul Gaultier.  Fashion's enfant terrible did not disappoint.  

Gaultier delivered Moulin Rouge cross-bred with Punk, with all the attention to tulle petticoat layers and mohawk hairdos one can expect.  The collection was shown in absolute silence except for Catherine Deneuve's voice announcing the outfits.   Gaultier's theatrical finish was a Parisian cabaret dancer's can-can kicks to -- who else -- Offenbach.

(All following photos from style.com)

If you love the art and theater of couture, this would have been the show to see.

Interestingly, did anyone notice the prevalence of chokers and dog collars across designer offerings?  Perhaps, as we peel off our winter layers, attention to the graceful neck is the first sign of spring.

RODARTE ON "BLACK SWAN"

The Mulleavy sisters behind Rodarte commented on making the edgy, much-talked-about costumes for the movie, "Black Swan".  Known in the fashion world for their intellectual approach to design, they often appeal to the artier crowd, like (surprise) Natalie Portman.   See the New York Times' video from today:




As horror film aficionados, "Black Swan" was a natural extension of their vision.  The hand-made ballet costumes for the movie used materials like angora, spiky feathers, net, and metal to create the gothic swan images for the film.

For more on Rodarte's "Black Swan" tutus and the couture art of costume making, see the previous post: Black Swan Backstage

DESIGUAL MEETS CHRISTIAN LACROIX

Last year, I blogged about my pleasant surprise when I first encountered the explosion of colors that is Desigual:    Barcelona Buzz

Desigual Fall/Winter 2010

What's not to love about the Barcelona-based company's mixed print patchwork and rainbow palette.

Latest news is a resurrection for French couturier, Christian Lacroix.  Poor Monsieur Lacroix went through bankruptcy in 2009 and cannot even design under his name anymore.   Enter a made-in-heaven collaboration with Desigual.

Monsieur C. Lacroix for Desigual, photo from Desigual

Lacroix muses on the first time he saw a girl wearing Desigual in Paris (taken from The Telegraph, Jan. 21, 2011):

"As I watched her, I could recognise in her a member of my own tribe. It was an explosion of colours and patchwork under the elegant, discreet and always monotonous French sky. It was fantastic, truly love at first sight, a breath of fresh air, all multicoloured, scorching, revitalising, radiating Mediterranean colours and flavours and creeping into this global and colourless magma inhabited by zombies and clones."

Lacroix has renamed his label "Monsieur C. Lacroix".   I am excited to see what comes out of this collaboration!

BLACK SWAN BACKSTAGE

Every one is a-flap over Rodarte's gorgeous black swan costume ("Odile" to ballerinas) for Natalie Portman in her latest film, "Black Swan".

Natalie Portman in "Black Swan", costume by Rodarte

The costumes are beautiful  though they function more on the red carpet than in actual ballet.  Mila Kunis was quoted complaining of wardrobe malfunctions in these lovely tutus -- and they weren't even really dancing.

Real costumes have straps to keep things in place!
American Ballet Theater's Gillian Murphy and Angel Corella
in "Swan Lake"

Let's gloss over the fact that, yet again, there is a dance movie where non-dancers pretend to be graceful.   Instead, let us focus on what ballet costumes and couture have in common.  Rodarte isn't the only design label to get involved in ballet.  Jean Paul Gaultier, Isaac Mizrahi, Versace and Giorgio Armani are just a few others who have taken to ballet costume design.

It may surprise many to know that professional tutus can cost over $1,000 each.  In fact, when I needed a swan costume a few years back, I decided to see if I could do it for less with the help of a friend who is a bridal couture designer.

DIY Swan costume
photo by Lily Dong

Materials alone were staggering:

• Delicate, expensive fabrics
• High-quality tulle, beaded appliques and special materials like feathers (lots of them)
• Pre-made plain bodice with boning and pancake tutu skirt was already over $200
• Additional accents cost over $200 before labor!

beaded appliques and feathers on tulle
photo by Lily Dong

We cut and hand-sewed all these trims. Both of us toiled several hours a day over a few days.  Imagine the billing cost per hour of that at a couture house.

Now you begin to see what you are paying for.  Experienced cutters, designers, and hand finishing all add up.  In some couture ateliers, the fabric is individually hand-dyed or distressed (say, at Rodarte) before expert folding and tailoring techniques are applied.

But the finished product -- expressed with grace, line and true technique -- is well worth it.

Julie Kent of American Ballet Theater
as Odile in "Swan Lake"