Fashionably Late

What seems to be on everyone’s mind these days is finding the best bargain.  Americans are looking for the best way to spend their hard earned cash.  Now, this by no means is a new idea.  People work hard for their money and should spend it in the way they see fit.  With the unstable economic times, people are obviously trying to save as much as they can and save for a rainy day.  This has lead people to cut back drastically on their spending, which has, in turn, damaged the fashion industry.  Again, this is all old yet still relevant and upsetting news.  We were all prepared for the changing times but I think many of us still didn’t see what really was to come. 

The high end labels and household names of the fashion industry are looked at to lay the groundwork for trends, set the industry standard and produce some truly remarkable artistic pieces.  However, as a result of the American population pinching their pennies, these big deal expensive labels are making less money.  Less money, means fewer funds to produce their awe-inspiring pieces. 

In order to preserve their companies and stay afloat until this economic pothole is patched up, the fashion houses are protecting themselves by changing their design aesthetic, which ends up changing the entire industry.  What draws so many people to the fashion world are the exotic clothes that are shown on the runway.  Designers create pieces that are full of fantasy and like nothing anyone has ever seen before.  That said, these remarkable clothes are only affordable and wearable to a small percentage of people.  Thus, the fashion houses that are known for radical creativity are forced to reel in their imaginative inspiration and produce a collection that is more commercial.  As a result of this, some of the true geniuses in the fashion industry are being lost.  Their ideas are being refocused and changed to become more cookie cutter just so they can sell garments. 

One famous brand to follow this path is Nina Ricci.  For two years now Olivier Theyskens has been the head designer for this French fashion house.  His designs were widely appreciated for their dramatic construction and dramatic and daring style.  Olivier Theyskens brought a certain “wow” factor to Nina Ricci that critics could appreciate but were not fully understood by the mass market.  So in order to stay in a safe financial zone, Nina Ricci parted ways with the talented Olivier Theyskens and hired a designer with a more commercial appeal, Peter Copping.  I, personally, found Olivier Theyskens designs worth dying for and am devastated to see him leave.  Peter Copping is a very talented designer who should be revered by the industry, but I’ve never been drawn to designs that fall on the “safer” end of the fashion spectrum.  Give me wild fabrics, shoes they defy gravity and clothes that really look more like sculptures because that is where progress comes from.  Trends can only move so far forward when you create things that seem a little too reminiscent of previous trends.  Dainty ruffles, delicate lace, pastel pinks and skirts paired with cardigans will always be a great choice.  But I look to the runway to see innovation and creations that confound the mind and take my breath away.  I understand needing to make a profit but letting a talent like that go is a real loss. 

In addition to brands going for a safer aesthetic, we have to worry about losing haute couture fashion moguls like Christian Lacroix.  The haute couture designer and fashion celebrity has filed what is comparable to Chapter 11 bankruptcy.  But without haute couture from Lacroix, the fashion world will simply not be the same.  His designs have been widely popular since the 1980s and he is known for his luxurious, thematic designs that have a huge impact on the industry.  I think we can be certain that Lacroix will not fade into the background and for the time being we will have to just wonder what his couture show might have looked like. 

But will everything go back to the way it was after the economy has stabilized?  Or will designers live in fear of the next economic crisis and stifle their creativity for a more commercial approach?  There is no way to be certain, but fashion keeps changing to be more about the business and less about the art.

Nina Ricci Fall 2009 Ready-To- Wear Olivier Theyskens

Nina Ricci Spring 2010 Ready-To-Wear Peter Copping

Christian Lacroix Fall Couture 2009 

images from style.com

For many seasons now, one accessory that has been seen on celebrities and style icons worldwide is the scarf.  From winter through summer scarves are a predominant style staple and add some flair to even the plainest outfit.  Scarves have become so widely popular because of their unique versatility.  They come in nearly any color and pattern one could imagine and in a huge range of fabrics and prices.  Whether you have money to burn or need to keep your spending to a minimum, a scarf is an item anyone can buy.  One of my all time favorite scarves is black cotton with jewel tones woven in and cost me a grand total of four dollars.

A scarf can be paired with nearly any ensemble and can dress anything up or down.  If you are heading out for the night, either to a nice dinner or show, you can dress your outfit up with a silk scarf in a pretty but dainty pattern.  Whenever I am running late, my go-to outfit for a night out is a pair of dark jeans, a nice black or white shirt, a blazer and a silk scarf.  Try Matthew Williamson’s silk-chiffon scarf if you need to update your outfit.  The mix of soft and vibrant colors keeps it looking modern and makes it easy to wear.  To start you off, try pairing the Matthew Williamson scarf with the Urban Outfitters Silence & Noise Black Long Party Blazer with the Vivienne Westwood Anglomania cowl neck shirt underneath and a pair of Forever21 dark Skinny Jeans and Vicky Strappy Heels.  This outfit is a mix of splurge and save items that when you put together look trendy for your night out.

If you are trying to make a casual outfit less boring adding a scarf is a great way to do that.  If your outfit is plain, like a white t-shirt and jeans, try adding a big, full scarf in bright colors with a fun pattern or interesting detail.  For a more edgy look try the Tolani Stud Scarf.  The gold detail adds an interesting texture and unexpected element to an everyday look.  For another way to make a simple outfit pop, try this Virginia Johnson scarf in fuchsia or the Honeycomb Tolani scarf.  The bright colors and bold patterns will make you stick out in the crowd.   If you’re wearing a patterned shirt, try wearing a plain scarf in a complimentary color, like this SVS scarf in purple or the Essential Pash Wrap (shown here in teal) from Urban Outfitters, which comes in six basic colors.  
Whichever way you decide to wear one, adding a scarf will always make your outfit more interesting and chic!   

The rest of us normal people understand how ridiculous it would be to purchase a new outfit for every time you leave the house.  We buy our clothes to wear over and over again and love forever.  Personally, I would be heartbroken if I couldn’t wear my clothes repeatedly for fear of the world noticing.  I buy pieces because I love them.  I get excited when I wear my favorite things and I like to style them in numerous ways.  I admire celebrities who are not afraid to wear the items they love on many occasions.  Sienna Miller, for example, loves her white leather oxfords and creates some truly great looks with them. 

            Now, one thing I do understand is that you simply cannot wear the same formal gown to more than one event.  It is just one of those unwritten rules (actually it probably has been written down somewhere) that should never be broken.  But formal gowns can creep up into the thousands dollar range, and who has the funds to pay that kind of money for a gown they will wear once? 

Well, most celebrities actually don’t pay for most of the clothes they wear.  In order to get exposure, designers lend out gowns to celebrities for events.  Should the given celebrity wear their garment, it could be photographed and displayed all over the Internet and in the tabloids, giving the designer a ton of attention (i.e. free advertising). 

But then again, most of us are not celebrities.  We cannot afford to spend ridiculous amounts on pieces we wear once.  So what do we do?  Well, believe it or not, there is a solution.  Renttherunway.com is a new website that lets the users rent extremely expensive garments for much less.  They send you the dress you requested in two sizes, guarantee that it will arrive on or before the date you need them and let you keep them for a few days to wear to your event.  The cost of the rental ranges from $50 to $200.  Not bad when that same dress may retail for $4,000. 

When I first heard of this site I thought was an excellent idea.  I can see many people preferring to spend up to $200 on a dress they will probably never wear again versus several hundred to a few thousand.  I was curious to see how someone who attends more events than I felt about this new website. 

Over Thanksgiving break I showed it to my mother who agreed that the site was very practical.  As someone who goes to several events a year with the same people, she doesn’t like to wear the same garment too many times.  She also is extremely picky, fashion obsessed and loves to wear designer dresses.  However, she knows that spending over five hundred dollars on a dress is a luxury that cannot be repeated very often.  She told me, “I would be completely comfortable paying a max of $200 for a dress I’d only get to wear once.  I’ve definitely spent more than that on a dress I wore once and then realized I hated and never wore again.” 

This website can also let people take more risks with their wardrobe choices.  There are many dresses I have seen that are very trendy and chic at the time, but I could never buy them because they are too “of the moment”.  In a few months, that trend could be dead and I wouldn’t want to wear it again.  Also, there are numerous dresses I have seen on the runway and dreamed about wearing but knew I never could because I simply do not have hundreds or thousands of dollars to spend on one garment.  So ladies (and possibly gentlemen), check out renttherunway.com next time you have a wedding or charity event.  They might have that great Giambattista Valli gown or Proenza Schouler cocktail dress you’ve been wishing you could wear but never thought you could!