P.S. A matchbox

I haven't posted in ages but I hope this post will make up for my absence.

Anyhow, now that fall collections are all out, I can come back to my season favorite.

Proenza Schouler

The images kind of say it all though contradictorily they don't do this collection justice. L and J (my affectionate nicknames for the two junior geniuses behind this little wonder) have finally given the good girl who knows how to have fun (notice the subtle difference with the stereotypical good girl gone bad) a wardrobe of her own. I think the reason I like this collection so much is not only because, well, it's beautiful, but also because somehow, I feel like these clothes are what I need. To me, this collection holds some teenage angst as well. The leather dress with the simple white shirt, the child-like coats with the thigh-highs, the red lipstick with the messy, unbrushed hair, it's like a girl trying to grow up but stuck right in between childhood and adulthood.

The shoes are bad-ass awesome (I sat staring at a Tommy Ton real-life snapshot of them, hating the girl those Proenza Schouler-ed feet belonged to!). And also a little reminiscent of last season's underwater theme with the curved lines and shiny python stuff.

Youth and freshness are two elements that are difficult to capture and I think L and J (!) have become really good at it. The designs on the dresses at the end were something else. I loved the shiny blues and greens with sequins here and there. The scribbled pants were extremely attention-grabbing in the way their design was so chaotic. The fact these fabrics are always so attractive visually contributes to making that young vibe almost tangible.

The thigh-highs came in and added the perfect amount of sexy (along with those little mid-stomach openings or mesh decolletes). The fact they're put up so skin is seen only when you walk or when your skirt rides up in a certain way makes them less aggressive. I personally associate thigh-highs with a certain in-you-face kind of feeling and here, they're softened into something more innocent. I like that. Very much.

I'm listening to the Kooks' "Matchbox" and coincidentally, that word is perfect for bringing this collection down to,well, one word. A matchbox is filled with matches which make fire, fire being something dangerous. I feel like these clothes are a matchbox on their own. They hide a girl wild enough to go play with fire all neatly contained in a beautiful box. The sliding lid of the box is slightly opened, revealing bits of skin here and there, giving us a glimpse into a chaotic, complex mind... a Proenza Schouler gal.

Abbey Lee the Polar Bear

(all images via style.com)

Chanel bearsuits with mismatched patches of fake fur, furry boot bottoms soaked in water, a maze of fractions of icebergs, thick black fur pants. Karl Lagerfeld brought us so much fur yet itdidn't strike me as invading or overwhelming. He totally mastered making it blend into the outfits:the pieces of fur hanging off the leather and tweed jackets, or them being incorporated into coats with more subtlety. I also loved the accessories, especially this small ice-like bag.

Ooh and let's not forget this beautiful white dress which, despite its display of seemingly heavy fur, projects a certain youth and above all, lightness. It's like a cross of a butterfly and a polar bear that looks like an ice fairy. There's just something so pure, light-hearted about this dress...

And to end on another ensemble I liked,

in which the fitted boots, the bohemian-ish (one big ish!) bag, the soft skirt, and the kind of chaotic yet serene tweed vest are perfect both separately and as a whole.

Just like last season, I was exited to uncover this collection and will probably be looking at it over and over (and over) again.

In the meantime, I'm still luring over the Spring clogs...

Pretty Please?

I want this lollipops messenger bag badly. My birthday's coming up...

...Blue birds fly

So, I was listening to "Somewhere Over The Rainbow" (my mom has got this newly-found obsession for the song and she's making us listen to it over and over again to translate all the lyrics into French_ did I mention my mother IS French explaining the needed translation of English lyrics_anyhow) and I realized I had to write about Marc Jacobs' collection. I was hesitating to do this earlier and was trying (it failed) to keep up with everything going on at the current Fashion Week rather than pick out my personal highlights for the whole season.

But I guess nothing can really stop me from talking about Marc Jacobs (or Proenza Schouler) and his awing amazingness. His Fall collection was beautiful to me. Usually, and this applies to any collection I scroll through (examine closely might be more accurate) or see glimpses of in a style.com video, it takes me some time to take the clothes in, get the vibe, and figure out my view/opinion of the entire thing. However, for this one, it hit me instantly and the first time I saw it was enough to not only understand what (I thought) Marc Jacobs was trying to portray and also have me convinced. This says a lot about his designs and reveals a quality that is very typical of him. I know and I have heard countless people say it: the man comes up with collections everyone can refer to, he somehow manages to bring out diversity through unity (very contradictory... does that even make sense?) because his collections still present coherence.

via style.com

Anyhow, this season's girl was very vulnerable in a way, kind of naive with her simple hair and the whole tucked-in-behind-ears thing going on and the pink tinted glasses. That romantic touch though did not come in the way of the confidence that radiated from the simple yet well-cut pieces. I particularly liked the coats and the color palette was comforting in a way, a sense of "feeling good"ness that I think "Somewhere Over The Rainbow" conveyed too. Anyway, I feel very jealous of all the people who got to see this show upfront, it must have been a moving show and there's something about this whole collection that is simply touching.

I have homework to do (sadly) and though, I could (and would) write about this collection for hours, my notes are calling out to me for attention. See, they want me to ace my test so they are very supportive.

Enough about my talking notes, here's just a picture of Emilio Pucci fall RTW '10. I've never really followed Pucci but this strikes me as a darker collection and though the flowery motifs are still there, I feel like they're not as bright as I've known them to be.

via style.com

Voila! "Salome, come read your history notes!" and so they call with their squeaky note voices (because notes have squeaky voices, a most obvious fact, non?).

One Last Thought

I had a dream yesterday.

I woke up too early from sitting and staring at my feet. In those spring leather mocasin-esque Alexander Wang shoes.

They are like inhumanely beautiful. Can I have them for my birthday? I promise I won't ask for anything for like the next 100 years! Pleaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaase?

Who knew chunky knitwear could be so elegant?

Miuccia Prada definitely does.

I loved the whole belted big grandma-knit-me-this (not in any way referring to Miuccia!) sweater thing going on and absolutely fell in love with this shiny beige leather coat (right below). I feel like she just kind of upgraded the librarian wardrobe and made all these supposedly ugly items work (and terribly well!).

The models all looked unusually womanly with their ruffles and curvy silhouettes. Somehow, the beehives added to that. They reminded me of the stereotypical housewife rather than some hip teenage girl the last collection definitely pointed to.

I wasn't particularly fond of the shoes but I did like the chunky knee-highs with a stripe down the middle.

AND... THE GLASSES were beyond awesome. I think I'm going to get some. And wear them to school. Everyday.

First Post Ever

I've always liked fashion and it seems that with the rise of fashion blogging (and the fact I've been spending a lot, maybe too much, time checking out all those fashion blogs out there), having a blog of my own became something attractive and doable. So, here it is. Hope you enjoy it!