Tuesday 8 July 2014

Chanel Couture A/W 2014-15

Chanel is a Stalworth of fashion and, even in such an ever-changing industry, it's easy to imagine it always will be. For as long as there are women, many will want to be the Chanel woman. That demographic. The club.

As much as I am one of those dreaming women, it is less the main season RTW and more the Pre/Resort collections and, of course, the couture shows that have me sighing. When I see the pictures of the Chanel Couture A/W 2014-14 collection are already up on Vogue, I eagerly and with shaking limbs, click to view them. Other shows I take in bit by bit but here I'm almost panicked in my need to see and consume. I hastily scroll through the page, too quickly for my crappy internet connection to keep up with and wait for the next images to load. Consuming is really the only correct word, I gorge and decide to come back for closer inspection once this dire need within me has been sated.

As if it ever could be.

Autumnal hues gradually freeze into icy cool tones as the collection floats by. A mixture of references and influences delight the eyes and add to my feeling of frenzy, entrancing and bewitching my senses. As one would expect from couture, it's impeccable, detailed and rich. Many Chanel standards and hallmarks are present but somehow he's done it again and found ways to make them fresh and to fit inside a collection that feels less like 20th century primness and propriety and more of 18th century extravagance and elegance.

Brocade trims grace the more simple pieces while full on embellishment swathes other garments. A gamut of fabrics and silhouettes. Eighties power-shoulders and pedal-pushers given an elegance no one knew they had in them. Punk hair with tweed suits and sweet dresses. Boyishness and ultimate princess moments. Necklines that are high and reminiscent of Eastern influences next to golden trims and shoulder clasps like something a Greek goddess would wear.

It seems almost a parade of beauty and grace through the ages and the globe, uniting all womankind in a cohesive collection. Perhaps clothing should be part of peace processes...
























(Images via vogue.co.uk)

What do you make of it all? Has Colette run off on another imagination adventure or are you feeling it too?

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