Fall may be a few months away but it’s still fun to play dress-up in air-conditioned lecture halls, right? Here are my top ten* favourite threads to snuggle into from Fall 2008:
10. House of Holland
London’s favourite part-time wunderkid and full-time partymeister Henry Holland is bringing tartan and kilt back, in multi-colour. That trench and leggings would make great additions to any fashionista’s eclectic wardrobe.
9. Louise Goldin, who also showed at London, has created two of the most visually arresting fur-trimmed coats this season. She has a very distinguishable style even though it’s only her second runway show so far. Personally, I adore her futuristic collections and think she’s brilliant but that’s no fresh revelation since obviously the people at Topshop and shoe designer legend Pierre Hardy do, too.
8. Iceberg
Iceberg’s knitwear, for me, really stood out this season. They spun some very bold, striking pieces like the one on the left with the wonky zip, and got creative by winding giant knit coils around sweaters, accentuating the outfits with black latex gloves.
7. Bottega Veneta
A sleek and sexy black trench in lusciously soft leather.
6.Jil Sander‘s dramatic sculptural collars were a hit this season and are sure to feature in many an editorial in the months to come, during the long wait for the Spring 09 collections.
5. Haider Ackermann
Pushing up your sleeves during winter is as cool as hypothermia, but indeed this man makes it look sexy and andro-cool. Adorn with a snarl.
Because there is nothing cooler than being able to pull off a mad print on a pullover that looks like your little sister’s PJs as well as schizophrenically layered tights by one of Japan’s hippest, quirkiest street labels of which the cute-as-a-button Eri Utsugi masterminds. Outerwear sure to make heads spin as you bounce past.
3. Sonia Rykiel
Is there anyone who doesn’t look forward to Sonia Rykiel’s show all season? For their 40th anniversary, there was much to celebrate: a handful of colourful, fun intarsia sweaters in warm tints of pink, orange and yellow to look fab and comfortable in; the return of stripy tights (hurrah they’re in again! Juno anyone?) and bowler hats sitting pretty atop loose unbrushed hair.
2. Yves Saint Laurent
Yes, they’re hardly warm and snuggly knits but the sheer wizardry of YSL just bowls me over. The coat on the left here has a fantastic shape; the shoulders swerving into sleeves, with only the bare lengths of arms visible as they stretch into pockets that don’t sag in the front. The right for the perfect little lick of blue at the collar and hem, and the gentle rippling of the dark fabric with a texture that looks like wet rock.
1. White knee-length coats by Alexander McQueen and Eley Kishimoto
A rich, luxurious coat, magnificently offset by a layer of beautiful red silk underneath, looks like it was designed for royalty.
I am enamoured with this girlish pearly-white coat at Eley Kishimoto’s show in London (they hold one in Paris, too). Immaculately tailored and paired with white stockings and gloves, it is stylish, yet whimsical and delicate.
*This is not a comprehensive list and I’m sure that, due to my failing memory and the infinite barrage of garments that was Fall/Winter 08, I have missed out on many many great pieces of outerwear.
