Ingie Paris Fall-Winter 2017

The gold moldings were everywhere, and grounded just a touch with a large assortment of candles on mantles. With windows looking down to Place Vendôme, I wouldn’t have minded staying in this room for days. And so began a story of elegant fall evenings and nights in this beautiful city of Paris, both cruel and loving.

Designer Ingie Chalhoub has always been at the forefront of high-end style, having brought the first-ever Chanel boutique to the Middle East in 1983, even as she continues to work alongside storied houses such as Chanel, Valentino, and Ralph Lauren.

A Night in Paris

[portfolio_slideshow id=27277 align=center width=600 click=advance thumbnailsize=40 showcaps=false]

Her Fall-Winter ’17 collection brought out a number of beautiful designs, although looks #5 and #6 might have been my favorites. First, a strong, voluminous copper sarong-like skirt paired with a midnight blue blouse. It showed that excess fabric, done in a sumptuous way, can give a woman strong presence without distracting. The depth of that blue recalled a night in this city, with lights reflecting through the fenêtres françaises into a stunning Parisian salon.

The jacquard suit in the skirt’s same fabric conveyed neatness and cool-girl vibe as if in an afterthought. The jacquard suits were strong, gleaming in that sexy autumnal light.

Look #12 was a sweet, light knit suit that showed simplicity, but mastery in design because of drape and proportion. Its comfort and cut on the bias were two contrasting elements that delivered the experience of Ingie.

Also notable were the small touches of an older elegance in pearls and diamond pins, where the pearl earring felt eerily young, designed for a fresh look, now accessible for a younger crowd.

There was a bit of a weaker black sub-collection sprinkled in, but carefully designed, probably bound for certain segment of Ingie’s target market.

Throughout, the “strong women” message was clear and varied. She even showed some boyish shapes in the looser gowns. The designer makes bold statements in silent, small details like the power sleeves with bows on them, stunning in their ease.

Throughout, the “strong women” message was clear and varied.

There was a small sequin presence in the collection, important because of its rough glamour contrasted with oh-so-gentle silks, especially captured in look #25. The dress looked so comfortable and moveable — easy to wear, but the sleeves posed a constraint of fragility and class.

The winning aspect of this season’s collection was volume, executed with light fabrics that exuded that same decadence and elegance of the venue. The fabric’s light weight didn’t prevent them from having that beautiful, monumental size. Throughout, I felt the presence of the massive shapes she designed, which are only huge in their appearance, and are ever-so light. Unfortunately, the pictures don’t do their sizable presence proper justice, and I am simply so happy to have been in the room for such a moving collection. It felt like a mark in the brand’s history.

I am simply so happy to have been in the room for such a moving collection.

I loved being able to detect the designer’s passion in the collection, delivered in profound packaging. You really have to pay attention to what’s before you and look past the Instagrammable moment. It’s about reading into — and feeling — the passion and hard work that was breathed into each individual garment.

This one is a winner.

##

Learn More

ingieparis.com

With love,

FWO

Manish Arora FW17

The only surprising thing about seeing traditional African style at Paris Fashion Week is that we don’t see it more often.

Africa is, after all, the original home of technicolor textiles in genius combinations.

Up Close

[portfolio_slideshow id=27073 align=center width=600 click=advance thumbnailsize=40 showcaps=false]

(Photos: Clara Abi Nader)

The trick is to bring something fresh to the conversation, which is a bit like adding a meaningful footnote to Hume and Kant, or some other venerable dialogue. Although the nature of meaning and existence may not be at stake, the success or failure of it depends on having something real to say in the first place.

Fortunately, fashion expresses itself directly to the senses, so the merit of a collection will be subjectively judged, and transmitted directly to the occipital. (Less chit-chat there.)

 
The Continental

[portfolio_slideshow id=27081 align=center width=600 click=advance thumbnailsize=40 showcaps=false]

 
In the case of Manish Arora’s Fall-Winter 2017 collection, taking Africa (and various Near East inspirations) into outer space is anything but non à-propos. Far from it. A trip to the African continent can be a bit like Star Wars, with people of many cultures co-mingling in a world that’s still a bit like America’s Wild West. It’s a place of endless sky, real danger, and — at its most positive — unlimited possibilities.

As usual, we think anyone who screams “cultural appropriation” is missing a very important larger point: the human adventure is our adventure, just as we belong to one another.

This was a human show. A show that strove for aesthetic perfection in every detail, and executed it at the highest level, with Henri Rousseau-luminosity and magic.

It was a salute to imagination, and a future of endless optimism and possibility.

a salute to a future of endless optimism

Or, as the show program said, “a stellar forecast, full of cosmic love.”

##

Learn More

manisharora.com

With love,

FWO

Pascal Millet Fall-Winter 2017

The world’s fanciest couture will fall flat if the silhouette is off.

If Dior has one legacy in modern fashion, it’s in drawing our attention to silhouette: that ghostly specter that hovers behind, and defines, every outfit.

Gallic Glam

[portfolio_slideshow id=26931 align=center width=600 click=advance thumbnailsize=40 showcaps=false]

The French, of course, are masters as it: whether it be a sheath dress with a chunky belt, a wrap dress with a wrap, an X-line with a hat, or any other combination that would look well defined in shadow. Even “hipster” styles rely on silhouette, with their skinny pants, just-so jackets, and clunky shoes.

Like it or not, silhouette reigns supreme: and all the MK- or LV-branded handbags, Swarovski crystals, and rose-gold watches in the world are helpless to improve an ill-defined one.

For Autumn-Winter 2017, Pascal Millet took us on a tour of modern and classic French styling, blending some flapper chic with glammed up boho styling, keeping precise attention to silhouette.

Whereas many designers present collections that live in an otherworldly plane — and may only rarely see the light of day on a consumer — Millet instead created a casual yet glamorous collection: as such, one eminently wearable, and unmistakably French.

##

Learn More

pascalmillet.com

With love,

FWO

Tuomas Merikoski

Intensity.

The “reception music” usually tries to set the stage for what you’re about to experience. I always take a close listen to see if what the designer offers in the form of a preview successfully represents the collection to come.

At AALTO’s Paris Fashion Week presentation, the music was unusual and romantic, which made me think of a dry summer day, driving through the deserts of New Mexico with cast members of Napoleon Dynamite.

Coat of Many Colors

[portfolio_slideshow id=26871 align=center width=600 click=advance thumbnailsize=40 showcaps=false]

(Photos: Guillaume Roujas)

Designer Tuomas Merikoski kicked off the show with immediately loveable pieces. As a sucker for menswear and box shapes, look #1 was already an A+. As more models emerged, it was evident that Merioski was creating a Le Smoking-meets-poorly-suited Italian gangster vibe. Only it worked. It was elegant. Sexy.

With the suits, Merikoski showed how a designer can easily recharge those easy, French-style layers and French-style elegance with newness and excitement.

The designer left loose chunks of fabric flying about, suggesting an easy-going, youthful, and decidedly unstiff approach to suiting. They were very career-oriented — in a gloomy way — but with a sort of ironic air, superimopsing easy and nonchalant on traditionally meticulous styles. The color-block stripe suits seemed less successful to me, seeming forced into the collection. One particular detail that stood out under the suiting was a very high collar in a pinstriped shirt, which created an-ever-so brief Victorian moment.

Then there was fur, in conjunction with Saga Furs. Big fur. Fur as dresses, and fur designed exclusively for pockets. There was even fur around necks and elbows. Fur. I typically love anything with fur, but the designer used it in such unexpected ways. It was exaggerated at times without ever being vulgar, and in others, subtle but present.

The designer used fur in such unexpected ways.

Later on we found a bit of that desert fantasy I recognized before the start of the show, in the couple of (godforsaken) cowl necks and an elbow patch. This is where the designer shows his range: from starting with a strong, high statement of a killer suit and fur, — very luxe — to an angsty desert chaser.

Was it too much?

I think the AALTO woman is a traveler looking to take her experiences with her, but there may be some experiences — such as nights in a New Mexican desert — that should stay as a memory. There were some ill-fitting pieces that were just plain awkward. I refer to the dresses that were made with not-so-fabulous ’90s cowl necks in literally AALTO’s #1 color last season. I suppose there is some appeal to them, but it wasn’t immediate for me. It was a bit of a reach. They look a bit frumpy together, but may work if restyled with more focus on proportion.

A personal favorite was look #10, a gorgeous, pinstriped, high-waist velvet pant paired with a militia green blouse, designed with those utilitarian-chic panels. (These same panels are what the designer used to create those ever-inventive exterior pockets in other looks. The designer understands very clearly that women love their pockets. They make us feel at home in an outfit.)

A personal favorite was look #10.

The two closing outerwear looks literally yielded “wows” from the audience. They were so smart: a fantastic winter color, designed to be reversible and gloriously puffy, but dramatic enough for the runway.

The two closing looks literally yielded “wows.”

The collection overall was very conscious of silhouette, and hit the nail on the head in this fundamental factor. They were lean, boyish and young, recalling a woman who lives on the skirts of the subculture but still dresses to kill.

The collection presented a new breath of fresh air in these very noticeable creative details. It was a strong one, though I’d say the color range needed work. I think the designer should have phased out the singular red piece and left the orange-peach of last season’s collection.

Show Credits

Casting: Alexandra Sandberg
Music: DJ Dactylo
Hair: Joseph Puljate for L’Oréal Paris
Make-Up: Karim Rahman for L’Oréal Paris
Set design: Kim Harding

##

Learn More

aaltointernational.com

With love,

FWO