May 20, 2004 – Coco Chanel could be said to have started this particular chain of fashion events. Not only did she sew delicate links into the hems of her tweed jackets to ensure that they fell just right, she layered lengths of metal among her precious pearls for yet another classic play on high-low fashion.
This season, contemporary designers followed suit. Function gave way to ornamentation, as chains came out from under to wrap around torsos at Balenciaga, fly from waists at Fendi, and cascade down thighs at Versace (naturally). "It's about hardware mixed with fluid fabrics," said Balenciaga's Nicolas Ghesquière of his colorful, wrapped pieces. "I wanted to drape the chains around the entire body and thought it would be interesting to dye them in bright shades to evoke the colors of cars from the seventies."
—Laird Borrelli
This season, contemporary designers followed suit. Function gave way to ornamentation, as chains came out from under to wrap around torsos at Balenciaga, fly from waists at Fendi, and cascade down thighs at Versace (naturally). "It's about hardware mixed with fluid fabrics," said Balenciaga's Nicolas Ghesquière of his colorful, wrapped pieces. "I wanted to drape the chains around the entire body and thought it would be interesting to dye them in bright shades to evoke the colors of cars from the seventies."
—Laird Borrelli



