Chanel Couture Spring 2009 collection was one that was started with a piece of white paper, a pair of scissors and Karl Lagerfeld. Lagerfeld wanted to clean house and decided that he “wanted everything graphic itself, no bling-bling”. What we got was a beautiful collection in predominantly white, save for a few smatterings of black.
In the wrong hands, this could have potentially been monotonous and dull, but it was actually really fresh, clean and utterly beautiful. Every texture seemed to be alive, miniscule details sang to be be noticed.
Gently squared shoulders, often in cropped capelets/jackets were paired with a-line dresses and skirts or slim pants. Miniscule sequins dotted garments often creating stripes or gradations that were sometimes white on white but often in contrast for a sporty historic Chanel vibe. The classic Chanel Braid trim was trimmed down and sleek. Applique, sequins and feathers added dimension and depth.
The only print was a warp print rose silhouette. The graphic tears were actually seed beads sewn to form a pattern rather than a print.
Also spectacular were the paper hair ornaments/flowers that were crafted by Japanese hair genius Katsuya Kamo and a team of several people working in the Chanel Atelier while staring at images of 18th Century Porcelain. The results are nothing less than art.
Overall, I loved the clean freshness of the collection, very classically Chanel, but very new at the same time. The toning down of bling had fantastic textural results that were simply visually stunning. In this economy many people are down against the elitist nature of couture, but when times are tough beauty and inspiration are important and Karl Lagerfeld with this collection just proved his cause for couture.
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Pre-Spring 2010 brings footwear back to center stage with the bold use of ruby red. From subtle touches at Prada and Balenciaga to classic patent pumps at Lanvin, to Over the knee Satin boots at Chanel red shoes will definitely pop whatever you're wearing. For extra red hot flair do as they do at Valentino & Celine and go for red legs too. Or if you're feeling rebellious, pair with bright primary tights like at Balenciaga. One thing is for certain, it's about red, it's about shine and it's gotta be on your feet!
Sometimes on the runways there are some outrageous trends that I don't quite understand. Perhaps this one is slightly counter-intuitive and that's why I kind of like it! I mean in an industry that always embraces youth, seeing young girls with grey hair is kind of fun. Both Dior and Chanel Couture Spring 2010 had variations of the look. At Dior Couture the look was all vamp paired with red lips and cat eyeliner. At Chanel, it was more going hand in hand with the touch of silver seen throughout the collection and it ended up looking more cutesy than anything else. For me it evokes a sort of fantasy tale...a bit of Rogue in X-men or what I picture Annabeth in Percy & the Olympians to look like after book 3 (recent guilty pleasure!)
