A Look For The Day - Spring Blossom !

The weather is getting nicer but we can still wear some layers, it's the time of blossoming flowers and this photographic flower print pieces from the Laitinen Fall 10 collection gets us ready for the end of the endless grey winter.

Rythm of Time - Calvin Klein Menswear Fall 10

Italo Zucchelli's ways in menswear are a lot about modernism and challenging fabrics within the traditional menswear silhouette with a sharp American touch. The suits were rigid, in bonded techno fabrics, Mylar, nylon, silk mesh, and sometimes embellished by a moiré effect.
This modern American tailoring defines a whole aesthetic utopia, the suited up, square faced American modern business man, sharp and rigid, freed from the Saville Row roots, more up to date with an unmissable cinematic feel to the looks. The pure lines of the silhouettes, the rigidity of the materials and the metallic tones contribute to elaborate a new classic look, which still takes a bit of courage to wear, an outfit that appears traditional from far and stranger as it gets close, this what Calvin Klein has been establishing for a moment now with the subtle designs of Zucchelli.

Images from WWD.com

DENIS COLOMB - Fall 10

Denis Colomb has a name fit for an adventurer; appropriately his collection is made for contemporary globe trotters. Colomb, a French architect, started developing textiles when he moved to New York in 2004. He is now LA-based, designing a complete collection of cashmere for men and women that, while still under the press’ radar, has already been picked up by the best shops in the world, including Barney’s and Atelier in New York. Collaborating with the finest craftsmen in Nepal, he uses the most refined fleeces from rare goats. This season, the exceptional wool took form as a series of draped traveling coats and sweaters in earthy tones, all paired with the softest cashmere scarves. These are truly the garments you never want to take off.

From the Style section of DOSSIER Journal blog

JOHN LAWRENCE SULLIVAN - Fall 10

It might have been the first John Lawrence Sullivan presentation at Paris men’s fashion week, but the brand is already Big In Japan, partially due to designer Arashi Yanagawa’s peculiar background. Before creating John Lawrence Sullivan, he was a pretty famous professional boxer, so when he decided to retire from fighting, his love for clothing and design naturally led him to create his own label.

For F/W10, the garments follow the rock intelligent DNA of Yanagawa’s designs: mod influences mixed with a touch of glam and traditional British tailoring, executed in the most refined fabrics available. There’s a certain something in the collection that reminds me of Jim Jarmusch’s Mystery Train, an idea that put a thoughtful smile on the designer’s face.

From the Style section of DOSSIER Journal blog

TILLMANN LAUTERBACH - Fall 10

A German efficiency in Minimalism and color control.

RAF SIMONS - Fall 10

It is now of common knowledge that Raf Simons has taken a new direction, entering what I see as the phase 2 of a well organised style and business plan, the youth subcultures influences have been swept away and so with the close to hysteric cult that was following him to be replaced with an endless take on how to do ( and sell ) tailoring in the 21st century. It's not only on the catwalk that radical changes have been made, behind the scene drastic repositioning led to a new communication policy, the omnipresence of the logo, the launch of advertising campaign and a re-targeting of the desired press. Out of the dark and into the light could we think, I unfortunately tend to think it is a case of commercial matters, and after so many years of groundbreaking design who could blame Mr. Simons....
For Fall 10, the tailoring obviously stays as the central spine of the collection, with experimentation to get closer to the body by the use of activewear systems. Velcro tabs gathering suits at the waist and Velcro strip applied gave the now usual for Simons futuristic touch to the collection, bringing even the coats down to a combination of separated items worn over suit.
Maybe the attendance has changed, surely the fans are growing up and some going away, but Mr. Simons knows his taking the path of (re-)inventing tomorrow's tailoring that we like or not.

TIM HAMILTON - Fall 10

Remember when Tim Hamilton was doing cute preppy American outfits ?
Well, Hamilton is now showing in Paris and as we say, when in Europe do like Europeans do, so Hamilton showed a attempt to renew tailoring with so-called modern twist, but I still feel like if this look doesn't really belong to him but more likely to his talented new style advisers. Unusual angles cut, stripes and color blocks, geometric patterns and good old doc martens composed the elements of a savourless recipe that might still need a bit of practice to fool us here, on the old continent's soil.

Walter Van Beirendonck - Fall 10

It's always about fun at WALTER VAN BEIRENDONCK, and for Fall 10 the crazy Belgian designer proposed a series of toy-ish outfits in bright color combining aviator jumpsuits, pseudo-classic tartan jacket with padded lapels, bomber jacket featuring a padded rocket shape at the back, but the surprise came at the end of the show with a series of womenswear look, baby doll dresses or pastel colors tartan tartan jacket over crinolines literally pierce by a rocket, a plane or animal heads out of white boned corset fabric, probably answering the little boys fantasy about what's under the little girl's skirts !

Maison Martin Margiela - Menswear Fall 10

The way the collection was presented was interesting and almost intelligent but it still barely hide the fact the what use to be a faceless design house is now a headless design house and it is of course not the worst collection I got to see this week but it was not enough coming from what use to be groundbreaking and bringing tears to stylist's eyes, the old Margiela we used to cherish...
It is unfortunate but can a Avant-Garde creative house fall into the hands of a mainstream fashion corporation such as Diesel and still keep it going, well ... well... Margiela is an example that it might not work as wellas they tried to convinced us it would...

image from WWD

ROMAIN KREMER - Fall 10

One of the only few young and cool french menswear designer is Romain Kremer and this season he proved that he could something more wearable but still pretty out there ! A series of cyberdog warriors ready for the Thunderdome in greys, black and bright fluo tones walked down the catwalk with diving-like low neoprene sneakers, making it the first collaboration between Kremer and footwear company Camper, and topped with mask like glasses, ready for a another galaxy's sun.

PETAR PETROV - Fall 10

Vienna based but of Bulgarian and Russian origins Petar Petrov has been showing on the catwalks of Paris menswear fashion for while, but this season he opted for a more intimist way of showing with a series of 6 movie directed by himself and his creative partner Christoph Pirnbacher, each one reflecting the different part of the collection with a general theme focused around the idea of tailoring for a modern rebel.
Part of a group of new designers emerging from Vienna in the early naughties, Petrov mixes the strong Austrian tailoring tradition with casual sportwear or workwear creating a wardrobe for a generation raised along the fall of all ideologies and the scission of youth culture into a myriad of obscure subcultures of all kinds. Harness like jacket, military inspired jackets, distressed white leather, camouflage t-shirt, handwriting scribbled print shaved fur coat are just a few of the pieces that Petrov defines as the wardrobe of Fall 2010 's anti heroes.

ANNE DEMEULEMEESTER - Menswear Fall 10

Even if it's been a couple of seasons now that a whole bunch of new designers claim or just design as if the spiritual sons of DEMEULEMEESTER, Anne is still the master of darkness. Skinny zipped trousers, multi-belted pants, light layered look and hintd of dramatic feathers hat defines the Anne look that many tried to copy and none manage to keep the subtility of the belge chic subculture's outfiter.

images from WWD

LAITINEN - Fall 10

For their first presentation in Paris, after two shows in Milan, the finish sibling Anna and Tuomas LAITINEN show a collection that plays with a contrast of rich and austere. Inspired by the photographs of Finnish juvenile prisoners in the 19th century; that had no prison uniforms, and so had to served their time wearing what they had on when entering jail. This led to an eclectic yet Spartan mix of fabrics and codes of dressing. In thei Fall Winter 10 collection those inspirations are interpreted with a clean and modern take, double-breasted coats and classic biker jackets have a surprise back of furry Tibetan lamb and formal tailoring is transformed into wrap jackets and waistcoats in washed wools. The prints are designed in collaboration with photographer Chris Vidal as in all the previous Laitinen collections.

group photos from WWD
All other photos from Chris Vidal

CERRUTI - Menswear Fall 10

With Jesper Borjesson confirmed at the head of menswear CERRUTI secures it s return in the top rank designers wit ha collection focusing on the legacy of the house in a modern that mixes tailored and outerwear in a perfect palette of greys, bronze and blacks.

images from WWD

RICK OWENS - Menswear Fall 10

Rick Owens goes tailored for Fall 10 with a collection that apparently "even my dad could wear" says Owens. And I think indeed mine would have had and so would I go for the slightly squared shoulders long jackets and most of the coats of this collection. Owens is one of the coat master of the season

images from WWD