Looks from the Prada Fall 2012 runway.

Miuccia Prada’s Fall 2012 collection was a pleasure trip, pure and simple. No hokum, no conceptual hijinks, just beautiful clothes beautifully done.Of course, beauty is in the eye of the beholder—and the creator here as well. Prada’s geometric pantsuits were pulled from her “Ugly” collections of the mid-nineties, the graphic squares recalling ’60s psychedelia, and ’70s wallpaper (the inevitable trickle-down of the flower child decorative explosion). But today there is a kind of beauty to them, and to the jewel-encrusted black tailcoats, trousers and open-front pinafore dresses festooned with baubles. In fact, they were just unabashedly beautiful.

Does that mean this collection was Prada on hold? Kind of. It felt like a moment of retrenchment rather than Miuccia pushing our buttons and shoving us over the edge. Then again, sometimes it’s a relief to take a moment, smell the roses and indulge in Prada’s vision of twenty-first century beauty. Be careful: it won’t last longer than a season.

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Winter jumpsuits… with or without belt? CHANEL had shown a chunky green bouclé one with big cargo pockets in their FW 2011/12 collection left… and RODARTE proposes a waisted clay colored version for FW 2012/13  right.

(intothefashion)

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(via:Telegraph)

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““I wanted to use waves of color in this collection—but taken from things you use in everyday life, I also was looking for different silhouettes to emphasize embroidery and embellishments”, she said backstage and, Katrantzou scarcely needed to add, to frame those extraordinary prints that have propelled her lickety-split to the top of the London fashion class. Hence a godet skirt, so difficult to engineer print-wise that she made only four of them. Or frothing torrents of chiffon. Or a strictly corseted shape she’d extracted from some historical research (specifically Elizabethan England) without, she was quick to add, “crossing into the territory of costume.”

Katrantzou also extended her repertoire in other ways. For the first time, she focused on a single color top-to-toe, like the crayons on her invitation. And she’d chosen deliberately banal subject matter to match the colors. Green meant grass, for instance, rendered as an ornamental lawn working its way down a floor-length gown. Yellow was expressed in a mandala of No. 2 HB pencils, erasers attached. They were rendered in rubber by the Lesage embroidery atelier in Paris—not only the first time Lesage’s artisans had worked with such stuff, but also their first collaboration with a London designer. Clocks, hedges, telephones, spoons, and forks also provided source material. The bodice of a rococo red velvet dress featured a red typewriter, its keys providing a coiling abstract geometry on the skirt.”  Katrantzou’s conceits were so beautifully conceptualized—here never more so than with the bathtub that foamed with crystals and pearls—that her elevation of the quotidian to the sublime was, once again, easily one of the finest pieces of theater in London fashion week.
This is the kind of collection with so much depth, richness and invention, it’s virtually impossible to dissect it all, to discuss every facet of its innovation, to articulate exactly how it felt to see designer create something so mesmerising, so unique, and hands-down so jaw-droppingly, unapologetically beautiful.

(photos:style.com)

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Rarely has a show referenced so many eras in the history of costume without being beholden to any. Marios Schwab opened with a selection of black, white and beige day dresses with plunging sweetheart necklines, dropped waists and spidery geometric embroidery. The collection soon segued into the intricate cocktail dresses for which Schwab is best known. The tension between the hidden and the revealed is something in which Schwab revels, perhaps owing to his father’s work in the lingerie trade.

High jewelled collars were offset by transparent décolletage-revealing chiffon that were nipped in by tailored corsetry in a way that was almost Elizabethan. Intricate beading gave the impression, from a distance, of dazzling Velasquez-like brocade. Waists were strongly defined while hips wereemphasized with sequin overlays, a motif that even found its way onto the seasonally mandatory astrakhan outerwear.Classic lace pieces were individualized by undulating art-nouveau necklines, an effect replicated by sinuously appliqued skeins of tulle, applied to see-through blouses and swirling lily-green helix prints. The closing full-length gowns, meanwhile, gave a thoroughly modern take on Pre-Raphaelite high romanticism. From the Dietrich-aping first looks to the dramatic Lady-of-Shalott dresses, by the end of the show it was clear that Schwab is a dedicated history buff.

(photos:style.com,hint)

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Michael Kors Fall 2012

Comfort and luxury are not mutually exclusive. In fact, between slinky Oscar-worthy gowns, and cozy lumberjack-inspired pants and outerwear, there was something in this collection for everybody: A perfect example of Kors’ enduring selling power.

Marc Jacobs Fall 2012

You know what mother always says about balancing proportions? Phooey, said Marc! Let the exaggerated silhouettes reign. And reign they did with exaggerated hips, pumped-up coats and mid-calf hems. If you’ve got a voluminous dress on, pair it with a super-sized knit wrap fastened with a super-sized safety pin. Naturally.

Derek Lam  Fall 2012

Another Derek Lam collection that made us long for fall. The prints were too appealing for words and those knits and outerwear are going to get bought up like crazy. Luxurious and simple, but still cool and modern.

Oscar de La Renta Fall 2012

Oscar de la Renta held back neither the power of the dollar or the lady. His runway was like a giant Valentine to his faithful fleet of tony women — young and old — starting with a fur-collared coat and skirt printed with an oversized jewel.

Marchesa Fall 2012

From enormous ballroom skirts, to expertly draped body-conscious gowns, Marchesa’s fall 2012 show was a a decadent visual feast. And if we ever have occasion to walk the red carpet, we’d be over-the-moon to wear any one of the pieces from this collection.

The Row Fall 2012

Sheer was a big focus for the twins, who have the kind of figures that could pull off such a revealing look. But a collarless black blouse, when worn with a cami and its tailored satin trousers could nevertheless work for day.  Such revelations didn’t feel gratuitous though, which is testament to the designers’ ever-evolving vision.

Wes Gordon Fall 2012

Another terribly impressive collection from an up-and-coming designer we’re growing to love. He uses luxurious materials in new, exciting and beautiful ways. He also just gets it. Expect big things.

Rodarte Fall 2012

Revolving around a vaguely Twenties-meets-Thirties American woman. Cue belted natural waists, feminine prints and a subtly strong shoulder. Add to this to the Mulleavy’s penchant for finding the most beautiful fabrics, including a black leather shearling coat.

Proenza Schouler Fall 2012

This collection was bold, confident and directional. More so than any other season. You can tell from this collection that they’ll continue to do amazing things.

Prabal Gurung Fall 2012

For fall, Prabal Gurung said his inspiration was Yoko Ono’s exhibition “Uncursed.” However that connection played out in the designer’s mind, it turned out dark, beautiful and stunningly executed on the runway, starting with slightly flared black trouser worn with a short-long wool cape. Sophisticated and deceptively simple.

Altuzarra Fall 2012

This young, buzzed-about CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund winner showed one of his best collections to date. Joseph Altuzarra was inspired by Corto Maltese, an Italian comic book sea captain whose globe-and universe-trotting adventures acquaint him with everyone from Hemingway to Merlin. He’s equal parts pirate and hero, and all charm. The latter of which describes Altuzarra’s runway perfectly.

(via:style.com,fashionista,harpersbazaar)

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