Brooklyn designer, Samantha Pleet, debuted her namesake collection in 2006, combining new and old concepts from art, literature, and music. Having since expanded her namesake label to stockists worldwide while collaborating with Urban Outfitters on Rapscallion by Samantha Pleet, this young designer brought New York another season of dynamicinspiration.
Amongst champagne rounds in The Highline Loft, last Saturday’s presentation displayed water-color body suits, twist-knot rompers, and polished trenches. A blend of coy cutouts and hints of menswear enticed the Francophile within as Pleet’s customized soundtrack, a collaboration with Caroline Polachek from Chairlift, crooned to a crowd of industry insiders and admirers.
After my unfortunate feelings about his last collection, Mark Fast relieved my concerns with his comeback this season. The Central Saint Martin's grad was inspired by "a utopia destroyed by acid rain," which came through in his crescendo-like silhouettes and brightly dip-dyed garments. Sticking to his signature of body-con knitwear, Mark Fast invited the sorbet tones and dark wonderland theme that we saw back in New York.
Creative Director Kevin Carrigan had the following choice statements to make about the CK Fall 2009 Collection on FWD.com...on March 27th?
“Subtly sexy"- the theme for Fall 2009. Okay, and we have heard this before....where? Oh, right. Every season from about 80 different designers.
“There’s a return to dressing up again...we’re calling it ‘refined eighties,’ with good fabrics that are softly sculptured, rather than linear and hard.”- How is he honestly parroting what every other designer has said about their collection this season?
“I wanted to launch a sexy jean for Calvin"- um, launch a sexy jean? Brooke Shields called- she said that nothing comes between you and your trite fashion one-liners.
I've always been a tad impatient with Calvin Klein as a brand, but honestly when their creative director can't come up with anything unique to say about their collection- especially almost two months after NY Fashion Week- it just looks bad.
"I haven't been to Egypt, but it's one place I've always wanted to go," said Siriano. "So it was my interpretation of what I feel like it should be, or my fantasy of what I think it is...I wanted the collection to be powerful, but I still wanted it to be soft and still feminine, and still wearable."
Christian Siriano, on the inspiration for his Fall 2009 Collection, Fashion Wire Daily
Yes, I know NY Fashion Week has come and gone (sadly) but Christian Siriano has been doing a fantastic job of staying in the public eye, unlike most of the other Project Runway winners (Chloe Dao? What ever happened to her?). He's definitely the most successful-unlike Season 4 winner Jeffrey Sebelia and the live-action Bratz movie costume gig he scored.
"My vision is not about fantasy; it's about reality. I design for women, and I have my eyes on what I want you to look like." -Yigal Azrouel, in W Magazine
"Prints for the collection are abstracted from photographs taken on my iPhone at my friend's Upstate house or at the Tate Modern in London." -Maria Cornejo, on her inspiration in WWD
