Grand Palais Tuesday: Chanel F/W 2011

Gentle Reader -

London, Milan and Paris have been exciting to watch for Fall-Winter 2011, as several collections have had real potential to yield key vintage pieces within 2-3 years.

Today we'll see if Chanel is added to the list.

- AP

Cryptic Monday: Dior, Lanvin

Gentle Reader -

Friday's Dior show was restrained, yet unmistakably recent Dior.

For Lanvin, there were a series of dresses that were a polite nod to the Lanvin Castillo days: youthful, aware, carefree.

In the air: a push toward sophisticated dressing.

- AP

The Sphinx Speaks: Dior Now

For those nervous about a Dior without Galliano, please remember that Dior has been Dior with (and without) the following:

- Christian Dior (the New Look, among many other looks)
- Yves Saint Laurent (the Trapeze, before opening his own house)
- Marc Bohan (polite suits and dresses - and underrated)
- Gianfranco Ferre (dramatic, bold draping)

The more pressing question for Dior is: what will be presented? The collection of a dismissed designer, or something else?

- AP

Cryptic Monday: After-Oscar Reality

A reminder for this Monday:

The Red/Raspberry Carpet is always Performance Fashion.

- AP

In the Air: London Fashion Week A/W 2011

Gentle Reader -

London is determined to gain ground in the global fashion arena - at least for Fall 2011. Technical ability and real artistry that came through quite a few of the collections shown in recent days - a freshness of silhouette.

Could it be that London designers actually had clients in mind, and not merely store buyers?

- AP

Ghosts of Fragrances Past

Gentle Reader -

While looking at the collection of fragrance classics, the following question seemed to come from nowhere:

- Louis XV's winter morning scent?
- Venetian favorites of the 16th century?
- Nefertiti's most prized unguent?

Proof that fragrances do indeed fade with time.

- AP

Cairofashion

Gentle Reader -

The photo above is not the Cairo of recent days. I was on a project four years ago ("Cairofashion: Egyptian Style and the Millennium") when I made the following observation:

Egypt of the A and B classes want styles that reflect their yearnings: streamlined clothes and dwellings with well-made, affordable furniture that is lightweight and of sleek design in harmony with the climate and the culture

It was indeed another time.

- AP