COLOR ME CAMEL
If there was any doubt that camel is the color of the fall season, it was cleared up by designer Hannah MacGibbon. Her Chloe collection was a study in the classic hue and every other shade of beige, from caramel to bark to bisque.
Camel is a fresh alternative to black, reflecting fashion's renewed interest in classic American-style sportswear, a trend that we saw on the runways in New York at Michael Kors, Marc Jacobs and Derek Lam, and in Milan at Gucci and Max Mara.
In Paris, nearly every designer had a camel coat on the runway. Chloe's MacGibbon showed sturdy man-tailored camel's hair coats alongside sleek high-waist trousers, dotted bow-front blouses or chambray shirts, and cowboy boots.
At Stella McCartney, the camel coat was sportier, more akin to an anorak. At Hermes, it was cut close to the body with a smart black leather collar. Lanvin's camel coat had sculpted power shoulders.
Hussein Chalayan showed a camel's hair poncho. And at Martin Margiela, camel came in the form of a classic turtleneck sweater, paired with a crimson red coat a color combination that's definitely worth trying on at home.
CLEAN SWEEP
In just two runway show seasons, Celine designer Phoebe Philo has become fashion's new pacesetter, cutting through the last few years of ruffled and bedazzled clutter, and ushering in a new era of clean minimalism, also seen at Stella McCartney and Chloe.
Philo's sharp navy blue coat, wool A-line shift dress with deep-set leather patch pockets, glossy leather A-line skirt and crisp white shirt fastened with a collar pin look right for right now. It's a look that points to the subtleties of good design, rather than an outdated idea of in-your-face luxury.
"I wanted to bring back the purity of design, but keep it emotional." That's how Lanvin designer Alber Elbaz described his decision to turn the page on his influential ruffled and grosgrain- embellished look and focus on sharp silhouttes and clean surfaces instead.
It was also refreshing to see designers turn their attention to grown-up working women and make a genuine effort to update their wardrobes with versatile day-to-evening separates.
On the streets, the Celinification has already begun. Not only are fashion editors clamoring for the clean-looking, natural-colored leather T-shirts, tote bags and wood-block-heeled wedge sandals from Philo's spring Celine collection in stores now, Zara and H&M have their interpretations too.
This shift should also mark the end of fashion's obsession with the more-is-more 1980s, and the beginning of a 1990s redux in the spirit of Helmut Lang and Jil Sander.
MILITARY ORDER
The military look has been on the radar since the spring runway season at Balmain and Louis Vuitton. And it's still marching forward for fall, building momentum as an adjunct to the masculine tailoring trend seen in New York at Alexander Wang and Ralph Lauren.
In Paris at Dries Van Noten, utilitarian shirtdresses in navy and dark green came down the runway, alongside an anorak with embroidered sleeves, and pants with zippers or straps to cinch them at the ankles.
Yohji Yamamoto used nautical uniforms as his starting point, creating some of the most youthful and accessible pieces he's shown in a long time. Highlights included a navy blue double-breasted, drop-waist coat with an uneven pleated skirt; a short bustier dress resembling a deconstructed pea coat with rows of buttons on the bodice and angled flap pockets at the hips; and a ribbed fisherman's sweater dress.,*
Junya Watanabe brought grace to the military trend by marrying it with his signature Edwardian-inspired tailoring. It was all in the details, from the notched Velcro cuffs on a fatigue green hourglass-shaped jacket to the frothy crinolines peeking out from the back slit of a fitted camouflage skirt.
The camouflage print became camouflaged itself on micropleated and asymmetrically draped silk dresses, some shot through with Lurex thread, proving that this look goes way beyond what you can find at the local Army Navy store.
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