The designers here at Paris Fashion Week are just putting the other cities in this fashion circuit to shame. Today Balmain, Balenciaga and Barbara Bui showed everyone how it was done. Prints, sex, glamour and ruffles. Bold yellows, vibrant geo-shapes and heavy metal belts took front row, even as celebrities and top magazine editors sat court-side. Okay let’s run down these three iconic shows quickly…I personally attended Balmain and Barbara Bui (which I was very late to due to the amazing street style that happened outside Balmain).
Barbara Bui—The smallest of the aforementioned brands showed off bright black leathers, placid prints and small leather details. I first learned of Barbara Bui on the Sea of Shoes blog, where the brand had sent Jane some of their fabulous shoes. The next day I was walking down Rodeo drive, a block from my house, and I saw the store…LOVE! This brand is practical, glamorous and simply fun.
Balmain—This is probably my favorite brand. If I were a 6-foot tall woman with an unlimited bank account, I would probably only ever wear this brand with Lanvin flats and the “IT” bag of the moment. Olivier Rousteing never fails to amaze and has picked up the line and direction of his predecessor Christophe Decarnin beautifully. With a mix of black and white and vibrant yellows each piece was printed and polished to perfection with a little bit of rock n’ roll and sex mixed in!
Balenciaga—Nicolas Ghesquière is another designer who always looks to the heritage of the brand to bring it to the forefront and create masterpieces with his collections. This season he looked at Balenciaga’s Spanish roots and brought flamenco inspired styles with large ruffle skirts, and black/white illusions to his Spring 2013 collection. It was romantic, unfiltered and offered something slightly new and interesting to the brand.
