Channeling Timelessness at Lanvin and YSL - Fall 2009 - Paris
Categories: Featured, Style
Written By: MadisonAvenueObsessions
Timelessness seems to be a big word in fashion now. Suddenly the focus has shifted from the minute trends back to what high fashion meant in the past - timeless silhouette with the kind of detail and craftsmanship that just makes it so special and flattering on the body, classic yet modern that never goes out of style or belongs to a certain season. Value is suddenly chic and splurging on the latest obsessions amidst all the global economic cataclysms seems somehow wrong.
After watching the Fall’09 collections of such extraordinary sartorial geniuses as Stefano Pilati of YSL and Elber Albaz of Lanvin, I started thinking about what high fashion meant for me when I was young. Growing up in the former Soviet Union in the 1980s, any imported clothes (let alone Yves Saint Laurent or Chanel) were considered an unattainable luxury. Those days, I spent hours obsessing over few fashion magazines that were brought in from overseas and passed through multiple hands like precious objets d’art. When I was 10, my mother traveled to Paris and returned with a classic houndstooth, black and white Chanel jacket — spending a small fortune. She wore it endlessly paired with a mini black skirt and high black leather boots - the trend that flooded Paris runways this season. Last year, twenty years later, I came across that same jacket in her closet. Still in perfect condition, it carries the kind of understated Parisian chic and quality that suggests that I could still wear it with pride and possibly pass it over to my children. For me, this is the true definition of “timelessness,” not the throw-away fashion that screams “last season” months later and is tossed or buried deep in the closet moving on to the next “it” thing.
With the runway set on a wet concrete floor reminiscent of a regular lackluster street, Alber Elbaz did not think of a specific occasion but rather the great fundamentals of any woman’s closet - great dresses and suites, all beautifully draped and cut on the bias. The first black asymmetric sheath, gathered and draped over one shoulder embodies timelessness and celebrated the beauty of female form. Gorgeous and impossibly well cut skirt suits felt classic, modern and incredibly right for these uncertain times when women need to feel strong and independent in their daily lives going through the hurdles of a tough economy (the steel grey raw-edged charmeuse dress was my personal favorite). But that being said, by no means were Lanvin’s clothes austere…stunning and intricate detailing like sparkly details in the seams and fur. The striking tubular and substantial geometrical necklaces and great platform booties worked perfectly with the proportion of the looks and made a statement on their own.
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Yves Saint Laurent- the house - has always been a subject of my obsession. I run to a store every time I need visual inspiration or just to be around beautiful things, not leaving empty-handed more often that I would like to admit. The Fall 2009 collection continued the theme of timelessness and classic YSL pieces like white shirt, motorcycle jacket, classic power suit and le smoking, channeled in a new way through a series of innovative techniques. Corseted black leather body suit with the zipper, a fabulous leather jumpsuit, a voluminous white shirt paired with flannel grey pencil skirt and a stunning long smoking dress at the end are my absolute favorites.
These are the clothes that women crave and I hope, will hold on to for a long time…just like my mother did to her houndstooth Chanel jacket…
