Saint Laurent S/S 2014 Paris

[disco54]

I think he just understand the market really well. Maybe it looks like common trend that you can see in the street, like stuff that you would buy in zara, except you get the nice cut and the nice fabric for that along with an actual brand name on it. Rich women don't go to zara. They have expectations for the products they buy. It's not because you are rich that you have to hang out all day in your face printed rainbow colored Prada fluffy fur or with your flashy arty printed dress from dior. Saint laurent is just proposing basics that are actually not so basic since they're a bit twisted and sometimes have some nicely thinked details (like the babydoll dress that gracie van gastel is wearing in the dance video that looks simple at first look but is actually half transparent once in motion) he is not creating trends, he is not innovating but these are most likely never going to be out of fashion. And if he is not creating trends, he is still setting them. Look at all the hate at his second women collection and look at all the grune everything grunge everywhere grunge all over who took down the entire fashion world these months, editorial, magazines etc, even in the streets seen on the "lambda customers". So it´s going to sell, again, and pretty well haha

LOL, many new york designers were doing grunge a season before Hedi put his collection out and its been a look which has been in high street stores for a good 2 years already. At least his last collection was more current. His latest collection is incredibly pedestrian.This is just a ultra diluted rendition of 80s inspired clothing Decarnin was putting out at Balmain 2008-2009 and was already heavily copied back then.

 

[tricotineacetat]

Just because both Slimane and Decarnin have been using the same source of inspiration does not mean this would be a literal copy of somebody else's design. On top of that, this is perfectly in keeping of Hedi Slimane's aesthetic universe, you will always have something more or less literally 'rock' inspired from him.

At this point, he's made it very clear that he won't be jumping on the 90ies minimalist wave that so many other designers have been drawn to in the last years. That could have probably made for more interesting collections under his hand and it would have likely zeroed the arguments of Saint Laurent looking high street - Which the clothes obviously do not do when seen up close and in separates. This will instead probably not be the last collection inspired by a certain momentum in pop culture and it will be up to the customer and observer to turn his collection into something that can be any shade of 'Jolie Parisienne' to 'Tomboy Rock Chick'... which, by the way, is actually great as a proposal under the umbrella of one label.

 

[Hchloe]

LMAOO. He has to be trolling at this point.

 

[Whats Ur Name]

LMAOO. He has to be trolling at this point.

I think he is, it's not even funny anymore..

 

[modela]

They actually let go of Stefano so they can have this instead
The collection is a mess and outdated.

 

[Les_Sucettes]

To be honest i got to give it to Hedi, he has been quite a smart.
He did not transport the grungy trashy feast of last season intact to the shop floor, he simply picked up some accents of the collection and mixed them up with classic Yve Saint Laurent and the result was faithful to what we've come to expect of the brand. The tailored pieces were absolutely superb, and it was obvious that some pieces when he took them out of the context of the catwalk "theme", they would please the typical Saint Laurent client as well as making the brand desirable to a younger generation.

Maybe with this collection will be the same, first there is the shock value and then it will be distilled into something more recognisable.
Is he a great designer, maybe not, i do not see a single original idea in any of his collections, but he package them in a way to make them desirable and that's what is fashion is all about for me.

 

[Not Plain Jane]

What's interesting about his 3 collections thus far is that he's paid tribute to three decades:

Spring 13 - 1970s bohemian

Fall 13 - 1990s grunge

Spring 14 - 1980s new wave

In each of these collections there are, unquestionably, direct references to YSL classic pieces: the baby-doll, the tux, the chubby, the safari look, the smoking, and so on. It's not like he's completely ignored the archives altogether. What he's trying to do is make the line young and happening. And as one of the professional reviews mentions, there is no doubt he's having success. His Fall clothes are in magazine editorials everywhere, and they look quite good on young stars like Amanda Seyfried and Lizzie Olsen.

It'll be interesting to see where (when?) he heads next...

 

[yesitsdagny]

Like always in Hedi's case the jackets and blazers are truly stunning! Few dresses, skirts and those sheer tops with little ruffles in front are also quite nice. I agree that there are some ridiculous and unflattering looks, too. But overall I kind of dig this collection.

 

[Uemarasan]

There are enough fashion victims in the world to fund this house and its creative director for the next ten years.

 

[frk-frost]

To me it looks very, very budget..

 

[Creative]

LOL, many new york designers were doing grunge a season before Hedi put his collection out and its been a look which has been in high street stores for a good 2 years already. At least his last collection was more current. His latest collection is incredibly pedestrian.This is just a ultra diluted rendition of 80s inspired clothing Decarnin was putting out at Balmain 2008-2009 and was already heavily copied back then.

He said Hedi set the trend, and that's undeniable. In fact, you already mentioned it: some designers were doing it before Hedi. And no one cared about it. Hedi did it and there's no magazine in the world without a grunge editorial.

Anyway, the collection is too generic, too basic, more of a permanent boutique line tan a rtw one. But in a way that’s fresh.

Plus, everybody knows Hedi is not Ghesquière and what to expect from him. He is not a 'designer' if we consider that word as someone who creates new solutions to old questions; he has just a very nice eye for materials and quality and knows how to make a basic piece perfectly. And, of course, he makes everything looks super desirable. In the first three months of her ternure at the brand the profit of YSL rose nearly 20%... Which is a lot.

 

[KKnardi]

I don't understand why this collection gained such great reviews... it's just baffling to me... I really can't see anything that's new in a way that can push fashion forward with ysl in mind

 

[VogueDisciple93]

One of the absolute worst of the season. There were a few well tailored looks, that were as basic as they come, then the rest were eyesores. My expectations are always so low leading up to his show, yet he finds someway to do even worse. My mouth fell agape when I saw the flame look - seriously? A flame one shoulder top with a snakeskin skirt, chain belt, and leopard boots? - and the look with the pink striped sequenced top and gold leopard print skirt. Then there was this awful 80's prom dresses. Horrible, horrible, HOR.RI.BLE!
Hedi has to be trolling us. These critics HAVE to be trolling us. I feel trolled.

 

[Izreal]

Hedi is a remixer..like when in music an artist samples sound bits from a certain era, and adds modern twist to make it fresh again.. the soundtrack of the show itself was an edit/remix of new wave act the cars.. Hedi knows what he's doing and it's obviously working for him.. some looks are definitely cheeky by intent.. he's not trying to play it safe.. the controversy actually elevates the rebellious punk attitude intent. it's all calculated.. even the looks that make you go "eeew wtf".. you can either take it for what it is or join the hate bandwagon which kanye recently drove off the cliff in that already classic line "it's been a minute hedi slimaiiin"

 

[KookyQuirk]

To say that this could be Zara is an insult to the high street. There nothing vomit-inducing here, just a whole lot of boring, stale and hackneyed ideas behind clothes that don't merit their price tags. It's Saint Laurent - and Hedi Slimane, too - for crying out loud.

 

[Phuel]

As the ever-so-thoughtful Not Plain Jane reminded us and we all should know by now, his collections have, and most likelihood always will be, tributes to the music scene-- past and present. And he will predictably, always infuse impeccably tailored pieces that will have a life of its own outside of the literal concepts and themes of the shows.

This could be seen as calculated by any other designer who occasionally takes on any music scene as a fashion concept. But with Hedi, is seems so genuine when he pays tribute to that arena. Not only do I sense his tributes are genuine because he is obsessive about the music scenes-- but he gets the look so right. It's not an idealized, hyper-stylized, or high fashion's take on a scene, or costume-y. I feel as I've been transported to that period-- 70s, 80s or 90s-- just with that Hedi clean and sleek signature. In all his collections for SL, the models look like they own the clothes, rather than trying to emulate a character. There's always an awkwardness and oddness to their presence that's refreshing because it's not all "model-y sashaying" and mugging. I appreciate that about his direction, even if I may not like the designs.

As for the designs, I'll always adore his leather pieces. He always designs such a sublime motorcycle jacket and blazer. These items may look all too common, and the whole high street argument is perfectly valid, but then again-- so is the defense that these are not your typical Zrara leather jackets and blazers in construction, fit and quality. I'd rather spend $5,000 on his leather motorcycle jacket than own-- however many pieces you can buy from Zara with $5,000...

I'm not a customer of his SL, and although I've got some pieces and suits from Stefano's YSL, I also own-- and still wear, some Dior Homme pieces from several years ago. My Stefano pieces fit effortlessly with Hedi's pieces, so I'm neither for one, or the other.

As a complete designer: fashion, photography, music and graphic design, I really like what Hedi's been doing. It may be dated and dull to some, but it's a new form of classic style to me (maybe the shows aren't the best examples of that, but I like what I see in the stores and in the campaigns). And I'm glad there are some that also feel that way about Hedi.

 

[balmain1914]

Balmain should cry for these bold shoulders and that gold dress.

 

[ogepma]

In all honesty, this collection is not that bad especially considering his atrocious outing last season. This is almost a breath of fresh air. I can definitely see more obvious references to the archives which is very good. The fit and materials look good as always. I take issue however, with the absolute lack of design in this collection. As has already been pointed out by many in this thread, this is very much akin with what the likes of Zara and Forever21 have already done, and will do this coming season. It would be great to see Hedi spend more time designing the clothes rather than just putting generic pieces together to form what he calls a "collection". I have very much accepted and even appreciated his aesthetic for the brand but he can do much better when it comes to designing the clothes thereby doing more justice to the new ysl aesthetic. For now, it's still a disappointment.

 

[Creative]

style.com

 

[GERGIN]

^
Right? Oy vey!!!