Runway Report: Milan Men's Fashion Week D&G Spring 2012

Foulard Power!

St. Tropez Brunch: D&G Menswear Spring 2012

The design duo of Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana showed their latest offering for the MENSSSES during Milan Menswear Spring 2012 Fashion Week for both their lines, including the lower D&G line which I am spotlighting here. For Spring 2012, it was all about the foulard--or printed scarf--it seemed to be the focal point and inspiration for this collection. Lots of silk fabrics, a relaxed proportion and silhouette.

Hugh Hefner Meets 80's Versace Poster Boy: D&G Menswear Spring 2012

Low-slung and LONG crotch/rise were the operative words here in terms of pants and trousers and jeans; the "carrot" style (long dropped crotch, loose at the hips, more fitted toward the leg and ankle) is still the go to look for D&G. Loving the colored driving moccasins and Top-Sider-esque shoe styles (just like in the Dsquared2 Spring 2012 Collection).

Vintage (early 1990's) Versace Ad, featuring Supermodels Nadege, Helena Christensen and a VERY young Niki Taylor

The printed shirts are VERY Versace circa 1992. I had a BLOUSON silk printed jacket back in the day (just like the one below at the far right) and I think it was sold in a "Lawn" sale many many many years ago. Now, I'm bummed I didn't keep it!

PJ's For The Summer: D & G Menswear Spring 2012

And if Domenico and Stefano have their way, it's NO to Speedo and Si, to silk printed "Board Shorts" with denim waistbands come next Spring/Summer 2012. These silk boxer/board shorts were very cute but they reminded me of pajamas one would have chopped off and turned into shorts (maybe that's the point NICK!!!). Well, at least that's what they would look like on me if I ever attempted that look. I'll leave that to you; the young Euro Boys...

Click Below for Full Runway Video of D & G Spring 2012:

Paris Pret-a-Porter Fashion Week Fall/Winter 2011: Louis Vuitton, Chanel--Pics + Full Runway Videos!

More Paris Fall/Winter 2011 Collections Photo & Runway Video Highlights: Hotel Vuitton, SUPERMODELS are BACK...and so is SPENDING Millions on a show + Lagerfeld's "Dark & Foggy" Fashion World...

Naomi Brings Your Luggage Up: Louis Vuitton Fall/Winter 2011

Louis Vuitton Fall/Winter 2011:

May I Take Your Whip? Louis Vuitton Fall/Winter 2011

Paris Pret-a-Porter Fall/Winter 2011 Fashion Week continued this past week and here I highlight two "Biggies": Louis Vuitton and Chanel. Marc Jacobs, Creative Director/Designer for Louis Vuitton was in a "Logo Naughty" kind of mood. As guests arrived for the show, they were greeted by uniformed French maids. Soon people dubbed this the "Louis Vuitton Hotel" collection. For this collection, Jacobs was thinking of a hotel where "things happen", fetishism, the sketchy guests, Couture Chambermaids who see EVERYTHING but say NOTHING: "We were thinking about obsession, fetishism and we thought about an old hotel, with its chambermaids and the affairs that go on there, the crimes and scandals. And we just wanted to reveal all the amazing creatures who passed through there," he said.

Welcome to Hotel Vuitton: Louis Vuitton Fall/Winter 2011

The collection was INCREDIBLE--from the looks of the video and photos. Great clothes featuring COLOR (yeayy!!!) and luxe fabrications and well-tailored fits. Of course, the accessories were TO D.I.E. (scroll below!). Vuitton, Inc. spared no expense on this show: There were old-style elevators which individually brought up all the models, and speaking of models:

Checking In: Supermodel Amber Valletta, Louis Vuitton Fall/Winter 2011

The Supermodel Brigade was out in fine form. Naomi Campbell, Amber Valletta, Carmen Kass, Carolyn Murphy, Stella Tennant, Kate Moss, to name a few. If your keeping a tab, that's about $60,000 (at least!) already spent--and we're not adding the elevators! Whatever happened to those "recessionista" Gallery-style more intimate shows? Not when you're an almost-$20 BILLION dollar brand like Vuitton darling!

You Better Leave a Tip: Supermodel Mariacarla Boscono, Louis Vuitton Fall/Winter 2011

6AM Walk of Shame Ensemble: Supermodel Kate Moss, Louis Vuitton

Luxe Handcuffs: Louis Vuitton Fall/Winter 2011

Le Must Shoe: Louis Vuitton Fall/Winter 2011

I Want That Hat! Louis Vuitton Fall/Winter 2011

Louis Vuitton by Marc Jacobs Fall/Winter 2011 Full Runway Show:

Chanel Fall/Winter 2011:

Freja Man-Drag: Opening Look from Chanel Fall/Winter 2011

Now, speaking of multi-billion dollar brands, wait until you see the latest Chanel runway show and that opening (full video at the end of posting here) . For the latest Fall/Winter 2011 Chanel Collection, Designer Karl Lagerfeld is said to have been in a dark and somber mood and the runway stage--if you could call it that, reflected it: It was a foggy forest on a bed of still-smoldering scorched earth with rocks and faux coal. It was Fashion post Volcanic Eruption! Who knew clothes could look this chic after a natural Karl Lagerfeld-infused disaster.

Nordic Tweed: Chanel Fall/Winter 2011

Lots of grays, blacks, torn and tattered boucles, with a pop of burnt red here and there. There was again this division of Male-female, common in many a collection this season. It seems for the Chanel girl, Daywear means to bring out your "Inner Fashion Testosterone" and yet for Evening, it's time to be a girl again! Oh and if you are a Chanel Man, well...scroll down and take a look...

Volcanic Hunting Season: Chanel Fall/Winter 2011

Knit Red Carpet: Chanel Fall/Winter 2011

Post Eruption Sequins: Chanel Fall/Winter 2011

I'm So Mad I Have To Wear This Pretty Dress After A Natural Disaster: Chanel Fall/Winter 2011

Man Survives Forest Volcano Eruption: Chanel Fall/Winter 2011

Chanel by Karl Lagerfeld Fall/Winter 2011 Full Runway Show:

Paris Pret-a-Porter Fashion Week Fall/Winter 2011: Mugler, Balenciaga

80's Divas, Lady Gaga, Latex, Stomping Platforms, Flower Power Dressing...

Strike A Pose: Lady Gaga making an entrance on the Mugler Catwalk, Mugler Fall/Winter 2011

Mugler Womenswear Fall/Winter 2011:

The Real Mugler...and His Muse: Designer Thierry Mugler and Jerry Hall

The Mugler Tough 80's Chic Power Diva Legacy Lives On: And for 2011, it's now being headed by Lady Gaga's Stylist/Creative Director, Mr. Nicola Formichetti, and his co-designer Sébastien Peigné. This was the most anticipated show of Paris Fashion Week. The scene was Church-like; columns and long walkway. Models sauntered and struck DIVA almost-Drag-Queen poses. The word "Fierce" would come to mind as much as that word is soooo two years ago. Lots of very TIGHT suiting, shoulder pads that would rival a Quarterback, heels so high MANY a model stumbled (they really should have gotten Drag Queens, they might have done a better job!) and enough Latex to make 1000 Condoms. The B**** is Back. And in the form of Mugler Fall/Winter 2011. Oh, and did I mention Miss Lady Gaga modeled??

Cover The Sisters: Mugler Fall/Winter 2011

Style.com summed it up this way: The collective vibe as Gaga's magic spell dispersed and the crowd shuffled into the night was one of bemused disappointment. Backstage, though, was another story. There, Formichetti was surrounded by the kind of clamoring mosh pit you're more likely to associate with his collaborator. "Fun is making a comeback," he said. "Mugler was a fashion god for me. It was more than fashion, though, it was entertainment." In that regard—and it's not one you can dismiss easily in our wired world—Formichetti and co. nailed it. But will Gaga be available next season? Maybe so. Formichetti also informed us that his biggest fan has already "bought the entire collection in every color."

Stylists Will Gag: Mugler Fall/Winter 2011

Catsuit Fashionanimal: Mugler Fall/Winter 2011

Bra Not Needed: Mugler Fall/Winter 2011

Joan Collins Who? Mugler Fall/Winter 2011

Gaga For Runway: Lady Gaga in Mugler Fall/Winter 2011 Finale Look

Click HERE to watch a Suzy Menkes of the International Herald Tribune interview Lady Gaga and Nicola Formichetti

Mugler Womenswear Fall/Winter 2011 Full Runway Video:

Balenciaga Fall/Winter 2011

My Lunch Appointment Is Late: Balenciaga Fall/Winter 2011

For Fall/Winter 2011, Balenciaga Designer/Creative Director Nicolas Ghesquière softened his muse: There were pretty flower print dresses and skirts folded and architecturally draped. There was knit mesh and leather jackets and a defined sense of playing with proportions. The shot of magenta, orange, and purples were fabulous--amongst the black. Just from seeing the photos and the runway video: I LOVED it! This is modern directional sportswear in a very LUXE high-end way. Ghesquière is way too cool for school--as they say.

Who Is Buying Me Dinner: Balenciaga Fall/Winter 2o11

Bubblegum Gallery Opening: Balenciaga Fall/Winter 2011

THE Coat of the Season: Balenciaga Fall/Winter 2011

Color Blocked Mademoiselle: Balenciaga Fall/Winter 2011

Balenciaga Fall/Winter 2011 Full Runway Video:

Christian Dior Haute Couture by John Galliano Runway Show Video Look Back--Part One

An Haute Couture Legacy...a Runway Video Look Back:

Cleopatra Meets Tutankhamen Couture: Spring/Summer 2004

Christian Dior Haute Couture Spring/Summer 2004 Part 1:

Christian Dior Haute Couture Spring/Summer 2004 Part 2:

Madama Butterfly Couture: Spring/Summer 2007

Christian Dior Haute Couture Spring/Summer 2007 Part 1:

Christian Dior Haute Couture Spring/Summer 2007 Part 2:

Christian Dior Haute Couture Spring/Summer 2007 Part 3:

Christian Dior Haute Couture Spring/Summer 2007 Part 4:

Les Artistes Couture: Autumn/Winter 2007

Christian Dior Haute Couture Autumn/Winter 2007 Part 1:

Christian Dior Haute Couture Autumn/Winter 2007 Part 2:

Christian Dior Haute Couture Autumn/Winter 2007 Part 3:

Christian Dior Haute Couture Autumn/Winter 2007 Part 4:

Paris Pret-a-Porter Fashion Week Fall/Winter 2011: Dior, Galliano

A Fashion Giant Has Fallen...But The Show Must Go On...

Atelier Bow: This is who took the Final Bow at Dior Fall/Winter 2011

As we all know by now, a Fashion Genius has fallen. We are all in shock over the news of John Galliano, his dismissal and more importantly, the inexcusable behavior that prompted it shown in THAT video. Yes, the Video Seen Around The World. So sad, that John Galliano's legacy could be reduced to this. When one Google's "John Galliano" for years to come, "Fashion Design Genius" is hardly the first thing that will come up. Yet, he did it all to himself, as the video suggests. Bridget Foley wrote an AMAZING article titled "A Dark Pall Over Paris" in last Wednesday's WWD which summed it all up beautifully and eloquently.

John Galliano

As Paris Pret-a-Porter Fall/Winter 2011 Fashion Week is getting under way, all of this DRAMA looms like an Elephant In the Room. And it was no more evident when the House of Dior was to unveil its latest Fall/Winter 2011 offering, all designed by Monsieur Galliano. But, as they say: The Show Must Go On. So here, I post the Dior Fall/Winter 2011 as well as the namesake Galliano Fall/Winter 2011 Collections...all sans John Galliano.

Dior Fall/Winter 2011:

Fox Huntin': Dior Fall/Winter 2011

Style.com's Tim Blanks, who was there to review said this: "Overtaken by events, this ready-to-wear show ended up as a swan song, but it was a pale testament to the extraordinary work the ateliers have done for Galliano over the past 14 years. The proper tribute would ideally have been one of the Dior couture shows, where the extravagant drama of the designer's soaring imagination was evenly matched by breathtaking workmanship."

King's Speech Fur: Dior Fall/Winter 2011

There were Equestrian themes, 1920's/1930's silhouettes, all very "Queen Mother in The King's Speech... for 2011", wearable suits, lots of LUXE furs, silk chiffon and lace gowns and pretty cocktail dresses to satisfy all the Dior lovelies. Every time I go into an actual Dior boutique, I am always surprised by how there's NOTHING of that Galliano UBER CRAZY on display--you walk in and what do you see? The purses, sunglasses, shoes, accessories. Well, of course, that's what sells! And then way in the back, the clothes: Elegant well-tailored chic suitings, simple yet sexy cocktail dresses. This, also, was what was on display in this--John Galliano's final collection-- for the House of Dior.

Snake Fur Luncheon: Dior Fall/Winter 2011

Sheer Lady Dior: Dior Fall/Winter 2011

Baby Doll Dior: Dior Fall/Winter 2011

Cocktails at Plaza Athenee: Dior Fall/Winter 2011

Dior Fall/Winter 2011 Edited Runway Show Video:

Galliano Fall/Winter 2011

Colbert Meet Gable: Galliano Fall/Winter 2011

The John Galliano Fall/Winter 2011 Collection was shown, and yes, without its Designer. It was a 20-piece showing. It was all very 1930's--a theme Galliano loves. Suits that looked elegant but yet were meticulously--and purposely--tattered. Draped and folded jackets that would be at home in a Claudette Colbert/Clark Gable film and a Kimono gown that just needed a spiral staircase in Bel Air. Most of it looked like it came from a closet of a long-gone Hollywood Screen Siren/Goddess. Gorgeous yet very sad at the same time. Just like John Galliano's career.

Tweed Funeral: Galliano Fall/Winter 2011

Cocoon Diva: Galliano Fall/Winter 2011

Hostess Gown: Galliano Fall/Winter 2011

Angelic: Galliano Fall/Winter 2011

Galliano Fall/Winter 2011 Final Model Walk Video: