Celine S/S 2013 Paris

[ogepma]

I think this is her weakest collection for Celine. I really loved the tailored pieces but I those draped/twisted numbers looked forced and pretentious to me. It looked like she had run out of ideas. And this also felt like a double dose of minimalism (its simplicity was a bit to aggressive, if that makes sense ). It was an ok collection for me. As for those shoes, as hideous as they may be, the sure look very comfortable!

 

[Crying Diamonds]

Admittedly, all of the pieces that incorporate that draped 'tied in a knot' look I despise.. but this is probably due to my fashion control freak nature, as is evident with my love for the exquisite tailoring also in this collection.
I agree with ogepma with thinking this is her weakest collection, due to the lack of desireable, or at least with what has been expected of Celine, trendsetting pieces. The drape and the net make the collection bad, the net looks cheap and poorly done especially in that plunging neck dress.
The shoes are the weakest part unfortunately, as much as I love Schiaparelli-esque shoes I hate the idea of Philo giving in to gimmicks, and she needn't! I imagine her designs sell incredibly well and they're never boring, so why did she need red mink shoes?
I think the redeeming factor was the fabric; could she have chosen a much more luxurious type of silk? It actually glimmered.. and when it wrapped together and tied around a neck it had that expensive weight of the silk used to make an Hermes scarf. If I go to Harrods this season I'll be visiting Celine to feel the fabric, not to be inspired by the designs, unfortunately.

 

[Shiru]

I'd buy some of those furry sandals and wear them with my pajamas or bathrobe at home...
But I'd pass on the rest of the collection.

 

[Tentacl Ventricl]

@ # 76 thanks NPJ for posting Jo-Ann Furniss's excellent review. It seems Style.com have found themselves another decent writer besides Tim Blanks.

Re the footwear it was interesting to see mention of Muret Oppenheim. I went there last season regards Viktor&Rolf but the comparison is more on point in relation to shoes given their symbolism stretching back I suspect to Chaucerian bawdy. 'Cups' these days are of course generally presented sans 'fur' but the symbolism remains - applying fur connotes animalistic sexuality. So these are spa shoes sexualised. And I've already noted @ Prada and Rick Owens this season sexual references to Spa's. It's a confluence of the water/liquidshine materials trend and the movement toward eastern mysticism/spiritualism. These are Tantric Spa shoes.

I agree with Jo-Ann that the Celine woman having found a new ease is welcome. The have-it-all strictness of the Celine formulation now passed is an illusion. A stressful illusion. Relax already.

But not just deshabille, japonisme/eastern deshabille. Philo identified a knottedness at three of the Major Chakra - the throat chakra, the heart chakra and the root chakra. The vascillating dialogue between knottedness and being open at the heart - those deep decolettes of mesh - concluded @ #31 in knottedness. Still work to be done in moving from uptight fierceness to sweetness.

And how looks #3 and #5 sleeveless coatdresses resembled those of Prada's last season. Which observation stands not as critique but as flagging up a dialogue, a sharing of sensibility and message. For, eschewing retro, it's 60's or 90's incarnation, it's not a far step to stride (in fur infused spa shoe) from minimalism, via asceticism, to spiritualism.

Save that this is a movement (more than a trend, a movement) in which spiritual enlightenment and bodily pleasure arrive as one. Seek not power but bliss.

That which is waning is the particularly western form of sexual practise/style bound up with competitiveness and characterised by BDSM. That which is rising is tantric sex and spiritual awakening. A move from hate and hit to caress and cares. No longer knottedness nor ties that bind, no longer fierceness, but an openess to a new sweetness of heart.

 

[Uemarasan]

I'm not sure about spas and chakras (or the subtle hints at, ugh, Fifty Shades of Gray). The footwear just seemed like an inverted notion of bedroom slippers, especially since this collection was slouchier, looser, more relaxed and carefree compared to the more meticulous and precise lines in her previous work. It's just an organic response to this idea of comfort. I think MulletProof and NotPlainJane are very much on point with regards to this season. Many seemingly "comfortable" collections forget to take into account the discomfort of their footwear, so the texture and softness of the fur here makes sense. That said, it's still very unattractive footwear and could have used some more design finesse.

This looks like it will be better in retail, but I think it's a solid collection nonetheless. I like the play with volume, texture, and fabric. This is an interesting reconfiguration of the shapes and silhouette she had already established for the house. The clothes here seem to breathe easier, and in turn allow the body to breathe, too.

 

[vickileekx]

Not Phoebe Philo's most directional collection for Céline IMO but certainly beautiful nonetheless. However, the shoes are simply heinous (but I'm sure they will be street style sensations.)

 

[shutterbug]

I see what she did there. Creating shoes so strange that I've been converted into thinking that Birkenstocks might not be such a bad idea in comparison. I envision them paired with loose pants and button up shirts. Thanks Phoebe for making it acceptable to be just a little less uptight.

 

[Phuel]

Those shoes really are such a huge f*** you statement. I like it.

Phoebe's getting exactly the reaction she wants for putting those footwear out there. They're never going to see the light of day outside the show and editorials, so why the huge fuss...? But for those that must have it-- for whatever reason-- and if your feet never sweat, I'm sure they're available. I think they add a nice dose of decadence, frivolity and madness-- and just the right ugliness to the insanely luxurious and proper image of Celine.

I'm glad it's not all no-nonsense, strict, and wearability with Celine. Miuccia must be fuming it wasn't her and her team that put these furry footwear out there first.

 

[GivenchyHomme]

I'm glad it's not all no-nonsense, strict, and wearability with Celine. Miuccia must be fuming it wasn't her and her team that put these furry footwear out there first.

I don't think you can really compare furry shoes to giant geisha platforms. It's kind of hard to top that kind of ugliness.

 

[Deleted member 116819]

Usually she does collections that are very minimal and graphic with pop's of color, last season she put out a stellar collection. In this collections she put aside the graphic that was key (I think so) in her collections and played a lot with volume in a weird way, thoose knots in some models chests are very weird...really really weird
But the cool, easy and very intelectual spirit of the colothes is still there, but this collection needed something more to make a buzz and create excitement, other than the crazy cool shoes wich are pretty extraordinary

 

[Steddycam91]

Coming back to this collection after it was mentioned in this recent vid with Cathy Horyn.

God, this was (and is) so good. There's something so laidback yet perverse about these clothes: the slouchy trousers, the asymmetric knotted tops, the frayed hems, even the outrageous footwear that everyone lost their minds over. After the polish and refinement of her first collections at Celine, it was a shock to see clothes with such a weird, tossed-off quality. There were hints of this vibe in F/W 2012, but she just really went for it here.

Looking back this was such a frenzied, high stakes season -- with the crazy anticipation of Hedi and Raf's debuts -- and Phoebe responded by deciding to have a bit of a laugh at it all; it's undeniably cheeky to do a high fashion show and send out disheveled looks to a song called "Useless". She still has the last laugh, as these clothes continue to resonate much more than either Hedi or Raf's respective outputs at YSL and Dior.

 

[Fulton St Critique]

@Steddycam91 Hm, I loved Cathy’s take on the collection and her review in the ST video. This is definitely one of Philo’s most impressive works for Celine. However, during that time I honestly believe the hype behind Raf and Hedi was justified. If you read and listen to the “drama” of the day, for some odd reason the press loved to pin them against each other, their arrivals created quite the stir. I miss the competitive nature of the industry and the drama that unfolds. Having both talented designers showing new collections was exciting and heavily intriguing in my honest opinion.

But was this collection for Celine “@ting” or mocking the industry in any way shape of form? For me no, not really. I didn’t get a sense of humor from the showing (even with the song choice), but rather, an expertly designed ensemble of class and ease with the clean lines, nice handwork (the wrapped/twisted method), and gorgeous fabrics. According to Vogue’s Jo-Ann Furniss, Philo “defined” her collection as related to “togetherness, beauty, and friendship”. In a way you could attempt to make an argument that she wanted to bring the industry together I guess? Either way it is unsurprising to see her work take on a life of its own. She is a “designers designer” and everyone with even the slightest knowledge of the industry is in love with her- I am excited to see her next chapter unfold.

 

[Steddycam91]

@Fulton St Critique I'm definitely not denying that the hype and anticipation for Raf was legitimate, as it felt like a face-off not just between them, but also the historic houses they were working for as well as the conglomerates that owned them. As you mentioned, there really hasn't really been that sort of crazy excitement since. Gosh, remember in the early-to-mid 2010's when we were lamenting the state of high fashion on here? If only we knew what was to come...

 

[Fulton St Critique]

@Fulton St Critique I'm definitely not denying that the hype and anticipation for Raf was legitimate, as it felt like a face-off not just between them, but also the historic houses they were working for as well as the conglomerates that owned them. As you mentioned, there really hasn't really been that sort of crazy excitement since. Gosh, remember in the early-to-mid 2010's when we were lamenting the state of high fashion on here? If only we knew what was to come...

Haha truthfully I only joined in 2020 so I am not as familiar with the forums past thoughts, but I love looking back and reading the comments of previous takes on collections. I just read the thread of the Isabel Marant SS16 collection and one of the comments referenced how it was one of the only runway worthy collections of the season, I thought, wow, even five or so years ago there were feelings of mass decline within the industries standards. Sad to see not much has changed.