les semaines de la mode autour du monde

there seems to be one or two labels that are hitting the nail on the head from each fashion capital; proenza and kors in new york, nicoll and burberry in london and the talented haider ackermann in paris but NYC, LDN, and Paris are putting on display their heavy weights and coming up slightly dry. even some of the more theatrical designers such as lim seemed to be bullied into taking the minimal and very unlike them calvin klein approach. So i look to the

directional ones that lead the pack; in particular haider ackermann.

he has recently turned up everywhere. after karl declared ackermann would be only one able to fill his shoes at chanel the fashion worlds ears pricked up and now i know why.

ackermann stated that his clothes are not easy to wear and it is not uncommon for him to be called in when stylists cant figure out how to dress their clients in one of his garments.

his garments are often kimono inspired pant suits made of silk and layered. where did ackerman come from and what's his story? born in columbia and adopted by a french couple, this designer has moved opposite continents and brought the influences along the way.

ackerman is fast becoming a head of the fashion pack and in the same cluster of mine margiela lives in.

p.s. check the shoes below

the new breed rocking it out

ive recently taken an interest in the blogger breed whos presence in recent years is exceeding the celebrity. from the satorialist to garance dore the new celebrities are coming from around the world with great talent and in full force. my newest favourite is elin kling from sweden.

shes recently snagged her own capsule line with h&m (exculsive to swedish stores). theres no other way to describe her style than just completely chic. pulling off denim on demin, always wearing her fav margelia booties, injecting animal prints into her outfits and the skinny jean as a stable.

the french satorialist, garance dore, interests me not for her photography but for herself. to be honest i dont find her photos very striking but any photo of her working looks like art. with camera in hand, natural and european dress code garance pulls off a stunning photo everytime.

the opposite can be said for the satorialist. his work is more than often striking. there is a definite reason he is 'the' satorialist. he captures a moment and they are always so elegant in their own way. this new breed of celebrity is the quiet achiever type and are the ones to watch.

to be courted by couture

couture was array this week in paris, the europeans showed the world how its done. the embellishments, the fabrics and cuts were the focus. Karl replicated the original coco chanel mirrored steps with sparkling fabrics to match. the baroque inspired collection shone down the runway like a treasure find by indiana jones.

armani took the oriental approach in such a parisian way that it gave the designs an air of delicate french couture. oriental lace, bone white with a splash of colour that gave a delicate origami look to the floor length gowns.

however the colours that givenchy sent down the run way sent a wave of colour that could only excite. feminine cuts, circular silhouettes, gorgeous footwear gave emphasis to the graded colours.

Paris is the hub. 40% celebs, 50% press (and 10%...other?) know it. I have to say that it was nice to seethat the old traditional couture is still alive even if it is for the rich and semi- famous.

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a lesson worth noten down

i have new favourites. meet lanvin and dries van noten. one's from paris, the other antwerp. dark and elegant but unrelated. the names are thrown around but i noticed not many people know more than that.

dries is elegant and classic european in its style. rich forest greens, eastern european greys, that intriguing mustard yellow and hints of gold make the slightly conservative styles food for your eyes. the models aren't blank canvas's or made to look like albino giraffes. the longer hemlines and large use of tailoring is screaming to the client to bring back the skilled designers not the t-shirt printing christopher kane's.

Lanvin is in the same realm. it's a darker sister of this genre of design. there's still skill, tailoring and draping but its more experimental haute couture. its just such wearable art. it's for grown ups only in its style as the design is not risky or overtly sexy and unappealing to the reality tv stars trapsing hollywood boulevard. its the quiet achiever of the fashion world. the lanvin campaigns confirm this. they always look like a side from a hollywood film, action in the photo sets the mood. Head designer, Alber Elbaz, deserves an encore applause for the direction he's taken with the french fashion house. here's to the new wave of the polished look. out with the 'effortlessly chic', oversized t-shirts and in with..fashion!

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when even a little is too much

This month saw vancouver's finest in fashion strut their stuff. they once again showed the world why they arent a fashion capital. boring, highly conservative cuts were met with a slew of prints that made the models look like they were attacked by a box of origami paper.the designers took the trend of printed fabrics to an extreme when they shouldve only used a hint for a maximum effect.

the hem line of choice was mid thigh, darker shades of green were the favourite and interestingly leather was the repeated material of choice.

surprisingly, amongst the not particularly attractive cuts and colours were a few shining gems. Laura Siegel that recently graduated from parsons shone very brightly as

she showed her talent for draping by manipulating the volumious shapes to give line and shape. She chose a deep earth colour palate for the beautifully unusual garments. there was a definite african influence in her line. natural fibres were used in shades of cream and brown. layering the fine knits created the bulk and were complimented with accessories such as fingerless knit gloves and head scarves.

Carolyn Massey from the UK took a new direction for the british mens style. key notes were layering, tailoring and soft nautical colours such as sea blues and beige. the preppy was met with modern street style of denim, short pant suits and classic sunglasses to polish.

after sorting through the mountain of designers showing at vancouver a hand full were inspirational and a breath of fresh air. the long list included many foreign designers confusingly as i was under the impression that being canada's official fashion week they might proudly show canadian talent??..however my two favourites above werent canadian so perhaps it is a good idea to keep vancouvers fashion week open to one and all especially if we have another origami explosion again next year.

painting my toes

sitting on my steps today i thought about the email i received from a good friend about her success at showing for latvian fashion week. the neutral tones, sheer blouses paired with tailored military pieces. i was surprised at how great it looked. hmm, who knew latvia had a fashion week and on such a big scale? but then again who knew any city outside of the list of paris, milan, new york and london had a fashion week thanks to the press? all i mean to do is point out what goes on with some while we go about our usual business of say painting our toes.

we all move at such different rates. we all leave school. some marry, some dont, some have kids by accident, some reach for the stars and some sit watching the world. i think i fit in the last category. there's something so enriching from observation.

Sarmite's show was a success with interest from leading latvian boutiques and magazines. there were structured dresses with capped sleeves, epaulets used across the body and in multiples to give a feminine look or twist on the traditional. hem lines were high and tailoring the new structure. garments were tailored for the feminie with a tough side. paired with flat boots and high uniform socks the show was strong, clean and showed potential.

the common trends with the designers were clean lines, modern, neutral palettes. just when you thought you felt a yawn coming on a few designers pulled out the bold. the play with shapes was amazing at times and uh..interesting? at others. the colour palette needed a little work for all designer's lines. the designs were great but would've popped a lot better with the impact colour has. neutrals were the favourite for everyone although it would've been great to see more colour somewhere.. oh well, maybe next week?

où appartiens-je ?

..it has been brought to my attention that "this too will pass". sometimes we frame our thoughts and forget that nothing is the be all and end all. i look back and see the difficulties i've experienced and know i could've shaved off a few years of wandering but then again it's not in my nature to regret my actions. i never doubt my decisions and think that the word regret is a silly word.

i often wonder when it was that i lost my confidence. was it at age four when my skin was bandaged to cover the weeping? was it when i was seven and bernice told me courtney was close to being better? or maybe it was much later..when i went back to school and wasn't the brightest kid anymore. sad thoughts used to consume me. the laughing stopped for a long time.

i've always felt that i don't belong here. there's a separation like oil and water that rubs me up the wrong way. but then i wonder where do i belong? where is place that makes me smile and amuses my intellect?

for the time being i think the smaller things in life will have to suffice for my happiness. appreciating the blue sky, being kissed, summer afternoons, having him smile, my curiosity and dreaming of what is to come.