Balenciaga F/W 07.08 Paris

[amor]

judging by the several looks ive seen so far, it's kind of balenciaga ss02-meets-ss04-meets-fw04....first v&r and now this, the folk trend is so unexpectable. ps the shoes are screaming Dior in 2003 to me...

 

[gr77]

very disappointing.looks like a failed experiment

 

[messe_de_minuit]

Some of the pieces remind me of Etro....

 

[IheartNY]

i love this collection!

 

[Tinuviel]

karma...
the problem with the collection is the styling, but if you take the pieces apart and really strip it down, it's a very wearable collection...
call it "the galliano effect"...

i also really liked pre-fall, and i see the definite connection here, and the connection to s/s...

agreed. the individual garments are amazing. I love this.

 

[beaverhausen]

oh wow.. how un-Balenciaga can you get?

Quite disappointing, was expecting so much more

 

[zamb]

agreed. the individual garments are amazing. I love this.

yes, blame the styling, a very nice escape route for a lot of designers and thier supporters,
i love nicolas work and balenciaga , but i wont be biased (not that im accusing anyone of so being) to say that this is not a bad collection.
by his standars this is TERRIBLE
Where is the focus and consistency that he usually has, where is the new direction he usually sets.
this is just a bad rehash of previous ideas.
I wont hold it against him though, even the great ones have bad days............

 

[iluvjeisa]

But beyond that, this is pure Nicholas Ghesquire. For those that say this isn't Balenciaga, what is? Have you seen the collections Nicholas Ghesquire had done for the house (excluding SS 06 and AW 06-07)? This is a return to form, this is what he had been doing for years, maybe with a braver use of color.

He's employing the repetoire of techniques he's developed over the years, the painfully oranate draping, pathworks of prints and textures, and otherworldly tailoring. This is nothing new for Ghesquire. Although I was expected to be dazzled, I must say this is a well done collection with lots of covetable garments. But one has to wonder how in tune these muddy and overstyled looks are with the world when you have Simons over at Jil Sander who's essentially suggesting the opposite.

The big difference is the color scheme. Replace the electric blue, the reds and the Chanel references with stringent black and white, and you would, for the most part have classic Ghesquiere. That is an interesting experiment in itself, to see how much the colors change the reception and perception of the clothes. It certainly takes away focus from volume to texture and pattern.

I dare say I'm the only one but I like the blue tights, and is it only me...or is there a detectable Adam Ant reference

 

[youarearockstar]

I dare say I'm the only one but I like the blue tights, and is it only me...

Nah, I love the aqua tights, I think its refreshing with those dresses, especially when paired with the camel color boots and shoes. Great combination!

 

[MizBlue]

Absolutely love it!

I love his use of color, not so boring this time..

where you purchase, Balenciaga by the way?
Mostly boutiques or Dept Stores?

 

[Salvatore]

fave pieces from the show, credited at gettyimages

Fantastic choices!
It looks better now that I can see entire looks. I'm still not fond of the dreadful printed dresses towards the end.

 

[.francesca]

Nah, I love the aqua tights, I think its refreshing with those dresses, especially when paired with the camel color boots and shoes. Great combination!

totally agree - spot on with the camel boots.

actually, i think that the teal tights and the camel boots are the ONLY things i like about this. i saw it and went *shrug*, meh.

speaking of which, anyone have any details of the boots?

 

[J'ador-DioR]

REview from internet FWD
Booming off with Led Zeppelin's classic "Immigrant's Song,".

Even the song they chose is perfect
The jackets were cut to perfection. Even better than the ones he did for SS06 which I thought were pretty hard to top. This collection is sublime.

 

[luckyme]

this is kinda cool.

gettyimages.com

 

[.francesca]

well i can see the theme working with that song.

they certainly looked like they came from the land of ice and snow.

 

[Blanche DuBois]

Somebody posted a review by Cathy Horyn, and it says it came from her blog....what's the blog of Cathy??
can anyone tell me !!?? please

 

[MulletProof]

I shouldn't be commenting here because it's simply not my cup of tea but I agree with Lena, at many levels, this feels quite refreshing and unpredictable, I take my hat off for that, for not following all the minimalistic mood (that I adore) as the rest. I love that he's sending one big mess down the runway and it's brilliantly accomplished, I must say I'm really enjoying the styling and I'd like to know who's behind it..
.. I tend to have zero expectations on Balenciaga, maybe thats why i like this. I actually opened the thread to kill time until CDG comes out.

 

[masquerade]

ugh, well i have not been a fan of nicolas for the past few seasons at balenciaga, but there are actually some jackets and the belted pieces that i like. i dont like the keyiffeh references (for personal reasons ), and the tie die just makes me want to vomit.

but there are some good pieces in there

the peeptoe lace up boots remind me of prada from a couple seasons ago.

 

[Caffeine]

wsj blog review: www.wsj.com

Balenciaga’s Ghesquière Redefines Fall Fashion


The fashion show for Balenciaga, the dusty couture brand that was purchased by PPR SA’s Gucci Group in 2001, has become the hottest ticket of Paris fashion week in recent seasons.
The label’s designer, Nicolas Ghesquière, is credited with launching some of the biggest recent trends in fashion, including skinny pants and high-volume skirts.
Over the past few weeks at the New York and Milan fashion shows, many designers have presented collections made of dark colors, high-waisted pants, and dressed-up accents like elbow-length gloves. This morning, Mr. Ghesquière did exactly the opposite.
His pants were sporty and low-slung, featuring racer stripes up the sides. His dresses and jackets were colorful, and his high-heeled shoes appeared to have been cobbled together from plastic sneaker parts. Another big difference: there were no accessories on the runway.
“The accessories exist by themselves,” Mr. Ghesquière said after the show. “It doesn’t make sense for me to have a girl walking with them.”
That viewpoint isn’t shared by most of the luxury goods industry, where accessories are paraded down the runway alongside clothes because they make up the vast majority of sales and profits for most brands. In Milan, design houses such as Gucci, Prada and Dolce & Gabbana loaded models up with large handbags, bracelets and other accents to complete their look.
Backstage, while waiting to pay his respects to Mr. Ghesquière, Neiman Marcus fashion director Ken Downing said the designer “continues to redefine fashion” and added that he enjoyed the “chic sportif attitude” of the racer-striped pants.
Barneys fashion director Julie Gilhart said “there’s so much to dissect,” but that she thinks the Barneys customer will be particularly fond of the private-school inspired blazers, mixed print dresses and khaki jodhpurs. Even the unusual shoes, she said, will appeal to a select group of Balenciaga lovers.
With his unconventional approach, Mr. Ghesquière has recently turned Balenciaga into a profitable brand, Gucci executives say, although they refuse to say how profitable. James McArthur, executive vice president at Gucci Group who oversees the Balenciaga brand, said after the show: “You know we don’t reveal numbers, but don’t you see I am smiling?” — Rachel Dodes

 

[brian]

a desperate attempt to relive his kaisik wong ripoff glory days