The Row : from Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen #1

[Dkammern]

thanks both Junya and Thesiren! didnt read the article.. i jsut looked at the pics and went

 

[ilaughead]

^ You worried me for a second there! I thought Marc was pulling a Britney! (It was her that went to rehab for only a night, wasn't it?)

 

[Carrme]

i'll buy their "white tanks" when the line gets as big as Dsquared

 

[leyla m.]

obviously the row is not doing some miracle designs and i am sure we are not all that stupid for it to be mentioned that its because its by the Olsens that we are grabbed by it..
lets state that a fact....
however, i have seen the entire F/W 07 collection and it IS good!
whether the fashion world "needed" another line of vintage tees and basic à la Rick Owens? Probably not.... But then, do we "need" anything in fashion???
not really, right?

 

[Fashion Puss]

obviously the row is not doing some miracle designs and i am sure we are not all that stupid for it to be mentioned that its because its by the Olsens that we are grabbed by it..
lets state that a fact....
however, i have seen the entire F/W 07 collection and it IS good!
whether the fashion world "needed" another line of vintage tees and basic à la Rick Owens? Probably not.... But then, do we "need" anything in fashion???
not really, right?

Precisely!

 

[ShesElectric]

There's a scan of an article on their line from W Magazine at the following link

http://www.olsen-twins-news.com/newsimages/march-2007/mary-kate-ashley-row-w-%20magazine-april-2007.jpg

Enjoy

 

[ponytrot]

I can't believe people are actually buying this. Isn't Calvin Klein or Rick Owens enough? There is nothing but T-shirt dresses and "tanks". I find it hilarious that everyone is falling for this hype. I mean how couture can it get when it is just one seam and in a tshirt knit material? Lanvin did silk dresses with one seam and he didn't call it couture. If you're going to hype up the brand by saying that there are couture techniques then use relevant couture techniques. A French seam is not considered a couture technique. it is a practical technique for sheer garments or for those who want to save time on finishing. There is nothing designer in this. There is absolutely no thought in any of these clothes. I'm not saying that it has to be intellectual, because I've seen well designed clothing for the sake of beauty and fun, but this is ridiculous. It is just a t-shirt, nothing more than that.

bravo!

personally i'd rather buy my basics from the source and NOT from the hyped up copy.

leyla and fashion puss, i agree wholeheartedly with the fact that there is nothing inherently wrong with this line but it irks me that there are talented and innovative designers who simply cannot put forwards their designs for the simple fact that they are nobodies.

i suppose i do find something wrong in the way celebrity and wealth supercedes talent.

 

[educo]

There are good designers out there who have gone to school, paid their dues, only to be passed over for a "celebrity" brand. It is insulting to charge outrageous prices for nothing but 2.5 yards of fine knit, and I'm being generous with that amount! I go to design school and I know what goes into making a stupid tank like the one everyone is raving for on this board. Trust me, it would cost no more than $100. And I'm being generous with that too!!

 

[educo]

there are dresses with french seams that arent asking these prices.

Karl Lagerfeld's Stella's, and Viktor & Rolf's collections for H&M had FRENCH SEAMS.

 

[misssakura]

You think the prices are outrageous? I don't find them to be that terrible o_O Personally I'd rather buy this than some of the crap Balenciaga puts out (no offence to Balenciaga fans) just because I don't think that it's being all that pretentious. And a 'celebrity brand'? Come on, Madonna's "M" is what I'd call a celebrity brand, huge launch and lots of promotion. At least this is being done very subtly. And didn't their friend who is the designer go through all the design school processes? Why not jump on somebody like Lily Allen who launches a line, not three girls who actually have a good solid idea of what they want to design and who they want to target.

I really don't find this line to be pretentious because I think you would know exactly what you're buying if you want to buy The Row...

 

[leyla m.]

educo,
i see what you mean but i am talking from a buyers point of view... and unfortunately as unfair as it may seem.. the Olsens making a high end line, is highly attractive for any concept store or high end luxury wear store.
in my case, my young customer (18-30) would want that.. just as much as my Linda Farrow Vintage collection is selling out to the same customer.. at the same time, they also love Erdem, BodyAmr (both young designers) but also buy David Szeto, Proenza, and Balmain.
I know how much the final mark up might not make sense but to a customer who pays 2000$ for a Proenza dress 250$ are peanuts.. Rick Owens has similar prices and people still love it and buy it, dont they?
This line is not aimed at the girl who only shops at H&M or Primark, this is specifically made for another market.

i agree with missakura.
at least with The Row, they have specialised in ONE thing: Basics.. unlike all other celebrity brands out right now

 

[JunyaSchick]

agree, with u all that said the collection cant be refered as couture cause it´s made basicly of basics... but i think they are thinking in big... u know what i mean... they are starting and they plan to expand and become a name in fashion...

anyway, this line has nothing to compare with h&m

 

[just_me]

Customers are smarter than to buy something just because it's made by the Olsen's.. from what I have seen here, this looks good.

And people always complain because something is expensive, then it might not be aimed at them..

 

[educo]

I understand that they are targeting a higher market, unlike other celebrity brands, but I find all this contradicting and hyped up. They named the line after Saville Row which is not exactly known for basics even if they were high end ones. I have paid more than what they are charging for other items of clothing, the only reason I'm complaining is that they are hyping it up saying couture this and couture that, but in the end, it's just a T-shirt. I'm sure the line is well made, but a spade is a spade....

 

[educo]

Customers are smarter than to buy something just because it's made by the Olsen's.. from what I have seen here, this looks good.

And people always complain because something is expensive, then it might not be aimed at them..

Unfortunately, it's not that rosy. There are some customers who buy the line SIMPLY because it's "designed" by the Olsens.

 

[educo]

agree, with u all that said the collection cant be refered as couture cause it´s made basicly of basics... but i think they are thinking in big... u know what i mean... they are starting and they plan to expand and become a name in fashion...

anyway, this line has nothing to compare with h&m

I'm not comparing The Row with H&M. I'm saying that if you're hyping up a line saying that since it has a single french seam and calling it couture and naming it after Saville Row, then any of those "designer" collections at H&M deserves the same tag, because it has french seams as well.

I don't have a problem with the Olsens doing a line, but if you're going to go out and hype this up to this extent (I've read the Vogue article on them, so I know what they were saying) then offer something more than just a worn out tank top.

 

[Li-Lo2357]

As much as I love the Olsens. The fact the yare even calling the line 'couture' is wrong in itself. Couture is made to order and made to fit - they simply just producing a line of apparantly well made tees (I can't say if they are made well or not, as I haven't seen them)

 

[leyla m.]

hmmm this is strange..
when i met them, they never mentioned anything about COUTURE???
neither did any of the girls working with them?

this word must have come from the press solely

 

[Guessgirl96]

in an article posted earlier it said the use couture techneiques, but I dont think they ever claimed to actually be doing couture

 

[MJCouture]

The never claimed the line was couture, they simply said they were inspired by a "couture technique." I do not know that they even truely meant a couture technique, but more a technique that is usually reserved for high end designer clothes (RTW or Couture). I think that the line has its down falls, and I wish they would expand some more into wearable knits (ie: not floor length vests), but the idea of great, quality basics is a really nice one. As Leyla said, this is not for everyone, it never pretended to be cheap or approachable it is really meant for girls like the Olsens and their friends. Young and rich, but who do not want to wear designer head to toe and need basics to tie it together.