Why do you like / hate Lanvin?

[Squizree]

I LOVE Lanvin because Elbaz has a very specific and glorious vision of a woman. A vision that is incapacitates a woman's inner beauty and her utterly beautiful mystique.
Fall 2008 and Fall 2006 are Elbaz' best collections for me.

 

[Miss Mod]

I'm a big fan of Spring 2007 and Fall 2006. I do like Elbaz's Lanvin, I like the way the clothes flow and I agree that he does have a good vision for the company. He knows how to flatter a woman's body, for sure. The past few seasons haven't really jumped out at me though. Nothing bad, but not much good either. I agree that Lanvin flats are amazing, but I hate the prices. Lanvin advertisements are really stunning though.

 

[papa_levante]

I LOVE Lanvin because Elbaz has a very specific and glorious vision of a woman. A vision that is incapacitates a woman's inner beauty and her utterly beautiful mystique.
Fall 2008 and Fall 2006 are Elbaz' best collections for me.

He certainly does. Alber knows that a women wants to feel beautiful without feeling too dressed up. He knows that she wants quality clothing and to feel beautiful, not just look beautiful.

Disagree, Squizree. The best collection was Spring 2008.

 

[Squizree]

^I was gonna say that one too It was definately one of the bests.

 

[HannahA]

I love Lanvin because it's shamelessly glamourous. It encompasses the fantasy that is affiliated with fashion. The brand dares to defy the recession and I like that quality about them. Although I could probably never buy anything from them, I respect that they are taking risks and laughing in the face of the recession and the more demure collections of other designers. Great topic, btw.

 

[Ghostboy]

Lanvin by Lucas Ossendrijver is the most amazing menswear line i've come across. Lucas knows what men want, and how to need to express themselves. The suède and patent leather sneakers are such a must-have, I can't wait till I own my own pair.
And their collab with ACNE was also extremely hip.
I LOVE LANVIN!

 

[Escale Cherie II]

Okay, there are more flaws than pros here, but Alber is one of my favorite designers, and the pros are so powerful and strong that they outweigh the cons

Good:
It's the 1930s-how can I resist? It's glamorous, classic, fluid and feminine it is Plus they use fur in a really tasteful way, and I have to give them props on that.

Bad:
Okay first of all I hate the styling of it on the runway-I think they can try too hard to make a statement. I also hate the color palette in a lot of the collections-I don't know how else to say it, but it's just weird sometimes-it can be both tacky and blah at the same time. I don't like the hair, makeup and overall the runway shows themselves. The classic thing can backfire too because it can get nice, but boring. Also Alber isn't the best with prints in my opinion

 

[Escale Cherie II]

Oh I forgot to mention-
I'm not a fan of all the asymmetry he does. It's just not my cup of tea.
But I do love the the details and accessories of his

 

[2Nova]

NO WAY I LOVE LANVIN
my inner 7 year old screams with excitement! Like dressing up as a princess but for adults. It's always classy and beautiful and though I'm definitely more of the tomboy type myself I love dreaming of the collections and the beautiful opulent jewelry!

 

[mikeijames]

i love lanvin BECAUSE it's expensive. why? alber elbaz has purposefully kept that house small -- and almost insider -- by not giving away loads of clothes to every new starlet that trips across the red carpet and playing all of the silly games the big box designers have to play to maintain market share. at lanvin, you get something personal. alber elbaz owns a stake in the house. if he doesn't do well, he's effecting his livelihood. he's not just out there creating clothes for award nominees or fashion layouts. further, he's not going through the motions of putting on a show and designing these clothes as some intellectual adventure or as some wink-and-nod strategy to sell perfume and handbags.

also, as i mentioned in the love/hate versace thread, it's so important for a house as large as lanvin to present a consistent vision while maintaining a sense of modernity and innovation. seriously, while we fashion-initiated may love to mix and match lanvin to its greatest effect, it's one of those houses that any woman off the street could walk into without a clue and walk out of looking completely elegant and refined. there aren't many houses on this planet that could boast the same.

also, as utterly luxurious the clothes look on the runway, every single lanvin accessory has the same transformative power as the most costly gowns. man, woman, rich, poor. it just takes the tulle covered faux pearls on the low end or the satin sneakers on the high end. and it can transform simple basics from mass market retailers into something more special and thoughtful. for years and years, too. a two thousand dollar lanvin necklace will cause so much more of a stir than a necklace of the same price from zales.

finally, one cannot say enough about a man -- although i take some personal issue with his own psychological idiosyncrasies -- who approaches this haughty world of fashion with such innocence and humility. it truly comes across. we need more big small personalities in this business.

 

[fashionista-ta]

i love lanvin BECAUSE it's expensive. why? alber elbaz has purposefully kept that house small -- and almost insider -- by not giving away loads of clothes to every new starlet that trips across the red carpet and playing all of the silly games the big box designers have to play to maintain market share. at lanvin, you get something personal. alber elbaz owns a stake in the house. if he doesn't do well, he's effecting his livelihood. he's not just out there creating clothes for award nominees or fashion layouts. further, he's not going through the motions of putting on a show and designing these clothes as some intellectual adventure or as some wink-and-nod strategy to sell perfume and handbags.

also, as i mentioned in the love/hate versace thread, it's so important for a house as large as lanvin to present a consistent vision while maintaining a sense of modernity and innovation. seriously, while we fashion-initiated may love to mix and match lanvin to its greatest effect, it's one of those houses that any woman off the street could walk into without a clue and walk out of looking completely elegant and refined. there aren't many houses on this planet that could boast the same.

also, as utterly luxurious the clothes look on the runway, every single lanvin accessory has the same transformative power as the most costly gowns. man, woman, rich, poor. it just takes the tulle covered faux pearls on the low end or the satin sneakers on the high end. and it can transform simple basics from mass market retailers into something more special and thoughtful. for years and years, too. a two thousand dollar lanvin necklace will cause so much more of a stir than a necklace of the same price from zales.

finally, one cannot say enough about a man -- although i take some personal issue with his own psychological idiosyncrasies -- who approaches this haughty world of fashion with such innocence and humility. it truly comes across. we need more big small personalities in this business.

Very much agreed.

... What are these idiosyncrasies of which you speak?

 

[mikeijames]

i have a personal issue with artists who purposefully avoid their own personal happiness in the name of creative output.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2009/may/17/alber-elbaz-lanvin-fashion-designer

 

[fashionista-ta]

i have a personal issue with artists who purposefully avoid their own personal happiness in the name of creative output.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2009/may/17/alber-elbaz-lanvin-fashion-designer

Well ... that wasn't my reading of the article. Sounds like he's neurotic, to be sure ... many creative people are. He may even be afraid to change too much ...

I didn't realize he's got a relationship of 16 years' standing--I'm glad.

I liked this ...

Elbaz is fond of saying that he is not interested in designing the dress that will make a man fall in love with the woman who wears it. He is interested in designing the dress that a woman wears when she falls in love herself.

 

[fashionista-ta]

daylife

Btw, here's a picture of Alex and Alber ...

 

[mikeijames]

Well ... that wasn't my reading of the article. Sounds like he's neurotic, to be sure ... many creative people are. He may even be afraid to change too much ...

I didn't realize he's got a relationship of 16 years' standing--I'm glad.

I liked this ...

it takes all kinds to make the world go round -- to be sure. and the world of fashion would find itself imminently lacking without alber's voice. it just breaks down to those who dream about going to the party and those who actually go. alber falls into the former category while others like tom ford fall into the latter in my estimation. and then we have an entire legion that doesn't even know there's a party.

while i appreciate what alber creates, it strikes me that he'd take his vision to the next level if he actually did the things that he dreams about. it's a disposition not unlike what marc jacobs went through before his wonderful metamorphosis.

 

[fashionista-ta]

^ An unfortunate example IMO, because I have really not cared for Marc's work in a personal way (i.e., I don't want to wear it) since his 'metamorphosis' I guess I just don't think that being buff is the ultimate accomplishment in life. I wish Alber could accept himself the way he is ... as we all know, he's darling.

Perhaps I don't know about the party But to me Alber is far more interesting than Tom Ford as a person (whom I find distinctly shallow). If I were going to buy into one of their philosophies, it would certainly be Alber's.

To me some of what he's saying is analogous to Olivier's really wanting to be a woman. (As you may know, he has said that he was pretty much planning on going the surgical route until his shoulders developed, and he realized they would be too broad to meet his standards of beauty as a woman.) I suppose something has to be the driving force behind the fantasy ...

Don't get me wrong, I would love for everyone to be well-adjusted, and any creative cost isn't an issue for me ... I think personal development is the most important thing we do. At the same time, I don't want to judge anyone for being neurotic ... I've been told that creative people frequently bring all of their talents from several former lives to this one, but drag along all the issues from those same lives too

 

[mikeijames]

^like i said, it takes all kinds. if someone is happy as an outsider, there's nothing wrong with that. it's just tragic if one finds oneself unhappy and doesn't take the necessary steps to find that happiness. believe me, there exist a large number of creative individuals in any number of fields who feed off of their unhappiness, but i don't think that's a healthy way to earn a living.

the most recent show from hussein chalayan marks another sort of metamorphosis: his earlier work showed something unresolved. his latest collection has a certain confidence that marks his arrival. ditto nicolas ghesquiere. his most recent collection had the mainstays he's worked on for years and years at balenciaga: what made it great this time came in the confidence and self-assured-ness that came through as a result.

alber elbaz certainly has a strong point of view, but there's something missing in a lot of his work. it's indescribable, but it's missing. fortunately, his genius is such that his misfires outperform other's best work. i mean, look at zac posen -- you can't get more comfortable-in-one's-skin but his work isn't NEAR the level of lanvin.

 

[fashionista-ta]

^ Reading back through this thread ... can you articulate at all what you mean by something missing?

I think there are limits to his ambition, but I find that charming, and I suppose also identify with that. Lanvin seems to be a very comfortable fit for him. He has certainly put his own mark on the brand, but it feels very comfortable and natural what he's done. I like the continuity of what he does ... it's a bit Jane Austen-like, he paints with the small brush. Tom Ford paints with a big brush, but I have (almost) no personal interest in what he does ...