fashionologie

All the Spring 2012 Ad Campaigns, So Far (New - Eddie Borgo, Marc Jacobs, Lanvin)

fashionologie — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 11:30:42 PST

>> Campaign season is here. So far, there have been Spring 2012 ad moments for Gisele Bundchen, Karlie Kloss, Alessandra Ambrosio, Miranda Kerr, Julia Stegner - and more. See those, plus all the Spring 2012 ad campaigns, in the slideshow - with more added as they arrive.

View Slideshow ›

Balenciaga Pre-Fall 2012

Christina Perez — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 12:56:36 PST

>> For Pre-Fall 2012, Nicolas Ghesquière riffed on early '80s Postmodernism - and all the bold colors, big silhouettes, and loud prints associated with the genre. There were jumbo zebra patterns, oversized pullovers, shoulder-padded coats, and pleated peplums - all in eye-popping hues and styled to the hilt with humongo earrings, super-dark shades, and New Wave hair. If all of this sounds over-the-top retro, never fear. Ghesquière has a knack for making even the scariest reprise seem fresh. To that end, he worked high-tech fabrics, sharp tailoring, and muted colors into all the far-out fun.

View Slideshow ›

Kristen Stewart to Front New Balenciaga Fragrance

Christina Perez — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 05:56:45 PST

>> Balenciaga has signed Kristen Stewart to be the face of its newest fragrance. The yet-to-be-named scent will be the house's second, and will launch for Fall 2012. "Kristen embodies the modernity of the new Balenciaga fragrance with her unique sensibility and intelligence," Balenciaga creative director Nicolas Ghesquière explained, "She shares the radical spirit of Balenciaga." Stewart - who has been known to wear sneakers on the red carpet - seems thrilled with the pairing as well. "The brand is just cool. That’s the way it is. I feel drawn to it," the actress said.
Charlotte Gainsbourg will continue as the face of Balenciaga Paris, the house's first fragrance.

Balenciaga Spring 2012

fashionologie — Thu, 29 Sep 2011 14:55:34 PDT

View Slideshow ›

Benches Break at Balenciaga, Causing All Attendees To Stand for the Show

fashionologie — Thu, 29 Sep 2011 07:34:25 PDT

>> Balenciaga became a standing-only show this morning - even for Salma Hayek Pinault, Anna Wintour, and Catherine Deneuve - between the high high heels, the highly-polished floor, and the breaking benches, which caused a number of attendees to fall, including Carine Roitfeld, some flat on their backs. Cathy Horyn Tweeted, "Benches cracking at Balenciaga as guests leap up. A second one just carted off. Now a third broke and nervous buzz starts, as in "Me next?" The International Herald Tribune's Jessica Michault chimes in: "Everyone has been asked to stand during the Balenciaga show because 4 of the benches have already collapsed under the likes of Mario Testino." And Tommy Ton added after the show: "I felt like I just attended the church of Balenciaga. Everyone standing in heels watching." A few pictures of the scene, in the slideshow.

View Slideshow ›

Critics' Sharp Tongues - Cathy Horyn on Nicolas Ghesquiere; Robin Givhan on Zac Posen

fashionologie — Fri, 09 Sep 2011 08:30:43 PDT

>> 'Tis the season for fashion critics to sharpen their pencils - and, so it seems, do the same with their words. Both Cathy Horyn and Robin Givhan have some choice thoughts on Nicolas Ghesquiere and Zac Posen, respectively.

Horyn writes in the New York Times: "The fact is, some forms just become worn out ... though he is not a showman, there is a growing impatience with Nicolas Ghesquiere. His experimental treatment of materials at Balenciaga has been exciting to behold, and necessary, but more and more the effect is like jumping on a spring-shot mattress. What happened to the cool street chic of Mr. Ghesquiere of a decade ago, when you actually saw women wearing his clothes? People who followed his career from the start probably appreciate his technical leaps and are willing to indulge him for the sake of creative freedom and the sheer hope of being knocked off their chairs ... But I suspect that our extremely materialistic culture, with the grab-and-go mentality fostered by the Web, just makes new fans itch for something to wear."

And Robin Givhan tells Page Six Magazine of Zac Posen: “Zac reminds me of another era in fashion. He’s a maestro. It reminds me of a time when there was an embrace of fashion as this fun, entertaining industry. He’s got a lot more competition now. [Early on in his career] he was one of only a few young guns. But people like Jason Wu have cut into a lot of the razzle-dazzle that he once owned. When you burn that white hot, eventually you burn out. That overwhelming hotness has cooled off.”

Gisele Bundchen Was Scared to Walk the Runway in Balenciaga Heels, According to Nicolas Ghesquiere

fashionologie — Mon, 15 Aug 2011 09:50:37 PDT

>> Those flat Balenciaga biker boots that have been so popular? Without them, according to Nicolas Ghesquiere, there wouldn't have been a Gisele Bundchen moment on the Spring 2011 Balenciaga runway: "The idea was to have this crazy casting with Gisele and Amber Valletta and Carolyn [Murphy], and they said no for high heels. They were not used to walking with heels anymore. Gisele was worried; she would not walk with my heels ... I was already thinking flats and I was already preparing the flat shoes."

Another defining Balenciaga moment that almost was not? The ever-popular, 11-year-old Lariat bag. "The group that owned Balenciaga in the old times - licensing blah, blah, blah - they heard that accessories were hot and they asked me, ‘Would you do a few bags with a license? We think it could make a little business,’" Ghesquiere says. "And we did this prototype and nobody cared; we had a couple of prototypes for a year."

One of those prototypes was the Lariat, he confirms: "Every girl who was walking [the show], including Kate [Moss] came in and was like, ‘What is that? Is it vintage? Is it something that you found at the flea market?’ I was like ‘No, it’s a handbag that we prototyped but just didn’t produce.’ We didn’t produce it because I think when I showed the prototype to the people who asked me to do it, they weren’t happy with it ... Accessories [at the time] were rigid. Luxury leather, especially, was about rigidity. So they were not really happy, and they decided not to produce it. Then when it was in the studio and the models noticed it, I said, ‘I think we should just do 25. Let me just give them to the girls because at least some people will be happy.’ And that product started from a very, very fashion point of view [and extended] to a very, very large, global audience."

Watch Liya Kebede and More Behind the Scenes at Balenciaga's Fall 2011 Campaign Shoot

fashionologie — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 10:20:30 PDT

>> For the first time ever, Nicolas Ghesquiere has released behind-the-scenes footage from a Balenciaga shoot - the Fall 2011 campaign shoot, which was styled by Marie-Amelie Sauve and captured by Steven Meisel in both a New York studio and a Harlem church. The video, featuring new Balenciaga faces Liya Kebede, Liisa Winkler, and Julia Nobis, is the first to come of many Balenciaga videos. When the brand relaunches their website later this week, it will feature 200 videos (and more than 3,000 photographs). “It’s important to be able to show things in movement,” Ghesquiere explains, adding that he plans to tap "visual artists" and famous photographers to produce more short movies for the site. A short film by Meisel, showcasing the Balenciaga Resort 2012 collection, is due to go live on the site shortly.

Balenciaga Resort 2012

fashionologie — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 14:12:37 PDT

>> Nicolas Ghesquiere is not cutting a slim silhouette this season - his Resort 2012 Balenciaga collection, as he put it, is “longer than usual, and with more volume.” That means full "umbrella skirts," voluptuous “double” shorts (inspired by the famous Balenciaga client Mona von Bismarck's gardening shorts), and nary a skinny pant in sight. Sun visors were the accessory of choice for many a look, and Ghesquiere played with a little trompe l'oeil, attaching a cardigan layered over a tank “in classic Jackie Kennedy style” or adding a tee underneath a dress.

View Slideshow ›

Fall 2011 Paris Fashion Week's Top Bags You Won't Want to Live Without!

fashionologie — Thu, 10 Mar 2011 13:19:22 PST

>> Hannah MacGibbon did bucket bags at Chloe and Valentino sent out delicate shoulder bags, but really, when it came right down to it, Paris designers had a one-track mind this season: clutches, clutches, and more clutches. See our favorites handbags, overwhelmingly of the clutch variety, in the slideshow - including the Dries Van Noten stunner, at left.

View Slideshow ›