Blooming Lovely

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>> I've just counted.  I will have notched up one hundred and fifty shows and presentations over the course of New York, London, Milan and Paris, not including the numerous appointments/resees.  That's a lot of bolts of fabric I've seen.  Truth be told, there are collections that I simply don't remember at this point, partly due to my brain fogged up by the seasonal cold and partly because some shows just haven't made a significant contribution to the fashion agenda.  

The final moments of Paris are playing out.  Despite my penchant for fashion newbies, there's no getting away from the fact that the biggie shows of these final days of fashion month really DO seal the whole month up, giving the season a heavyweight bookend that stays with you for years to come.  For this season, it had to be this trio of blooming dresses from the Alexander McQueen show, which just finished up hours ago.  There was much to be joyous about in the rest of the collection, but the final three flutters of crinoline-skirted chiffon apparitions was precisely the right sort of pick-me-up to excite and enchant cold-ridden folk like me.  These cascades of flowers in primrose yellow, poppy red and baby's breath white were meant to summarise Sarah Burton's vision of Queen bees, femininity and sensuality.  Bees flocking to the dresses in their thousands would have been the sort of showmanship that Lee McQueen might have attempted.  Instead Burton let the blooms do the talking and on the runway and in person, it was quite astonishing how the flowers looked like they were actually coming to life on the dresses as they fluttered about on the diaphanous skirt, structured with crinoline framework.

No, these dresses don't fit into any of the trend boxes that we've seen popping up – graphicism, monochrome, flat plains rendered into garments – and thank goodness for that.  They're for schmucks like me who every now and again need to take unfettered pleasure in beauty, without the need to analyse whether or not they fit in with the pervasive silhouettes/colours/textures or how many units that piece will shift on the sales floor.  There are in truth, few that can get away with such unabashed frou-frou and make it look convincing but it's Burton and her team McQueen's handiwork on these dresses, that proves to be irresistable to my reddening eyes.  And my blocked nose.  And my sore achey throat.  Moan over.  Just enjoy the flou and frou…    

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35 comments

  2. The collection is a great improvement to f/w 2012, in which the models look like Cruella from 102 Dalmatians during that time she crashed into cake batter and got baked into a cake. Sarah Burton’s feminine aesthetic really works well with the collection, though I would love to see McQueen’s own interpretation of bees and flowers. Sigh.

  4. wow to over 150 fashion week shows/appearances – is exhausted an understatement at this point?? I’ve got to hand it to you for keeping up with the blog in midst of all this fashion goodness.
    & WOW to this stunning gown. won’t be surprised if I saw the ivory in a wedding catalogue in the near future

  6. This is why I love you guys when it comes to fashion; you never disappoint me. The designs are just but par excellent

  9. The dresses are incredible, McQueen’s ingenious take on the ruffle’s we’ve seen popping up everywhere else? BUT I have to say the thing that has really caught my eye are the incredible headpieces so heavy that the collars look as though they are propping up the models like bedazzled neck braces. Can’t resist the shiny…

  11. For some reason, I’m not feeling it.
    It might grow on me, as a whole collection or as individual pieces, and I hope it does since I love, nay, adore McQueen.

  13. One blogger described FW 2012 as toilet-brush dresses.
    (I wouldn’t agree, but I see where they were coming from.)
    I think I might start collecting people’s imaginative comparisons for that collection 😀 .

  14. Oh my God! Absolutely brilliant! I just love the details and every dress there is really unique and very beautiful indeed! I’m in love with every color there, keep up!!!

  15. Incredible! I love the dresses with such fantastic roses! How I wish I was the one in one of them, specially the white or red one! They are really fascinating and so beautiful indeed!

  16. Once again Sarah Burton proves her instinctive ability to design a breathtaking and pioneering collection which remains allegiant to the core values of the brand. Her continuing adaptability at the helm of one of the most innovative luxury fashion houses of this age make her a very notable and exciting designer to watch.

  18. You must absolutely shattered! The dresses are divine, but I love the neckpieces most of all.
    aminorobsession.com

  25. you definately would forget these in a hurry, outsanding craftmanship but kinda verging on loo roll covers..but in a good way ha
    xxx
    vanessa

  28. What I find most striking about these dresses is their air of delicacy and fragility, which should, in theory, compromise the unsaid adjunct that designer pieces – especially pieces coming from a fashion house as adored and idolised as McQueen – are made to last and reflect quality and timelessness. But, they (the delicacy and fragility) don’t (compromise the unsaid adjunct…) – in fact, they go as far as enhancing it.
    Beautiful photographs – that too could be an adjunct, because it really did not need to be said – of a beautiful collection.
    Best Wishes,
    Tara

  29. You must have really been busy these days.With all that schedules and trips that you have you must have had a little time for yourself.Anyways, it must have paid off because of the pictures that you showed on you article!I love the pictures and the costumes here!Very colorful!

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