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Proenza Schouler's Secessionist Safari Fashion Wire Daily - Renata Espinosa
Sep 9, 2007
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Lazaro Hernandez and Jack McCollough are about as establishment as a pair of young designers can get. They won the coveted designer of the year award from the CFDA this year (a tie with Oscar de la Renta), done a line for Target and managed to dazzle and delight the fashion elite. And this summer, the Valentino Group bought a 45% stake in their company. And they're still under 30... Their mastery of design, revelry in the details, grasp of luxury and thorough understanding of exactly what their customer wants was clearly displayed on the runway at their Spring '08 collection on September 7, held at the Park Avenue Armory, and proved once again why they're still the crown princes of American sportswear. This season, it was as though Viennese Secessionist Gustav Klimt went on safari, bringing with him models ornamented in sharp hemp linen layered waistcoats that were neatly belted at the waist, jackets pieced together with panels of geometric patterns in graphic black and white, many layered over crisp white poplin shirtdresses. There was hardly a pair of pants in sight, and skirts and dresses were kept short, but this is the kind of sportswear that their Park Avenue dwelling fans like: Somewhat edgy, and leaving the impression of intellectualism, but ultimately quite feminine. But truly ingenious, and quite jaw-dropping, were the skirts and dresses made out of raw silk cut and dyed to resemble tiny, exotic feathers, like blackbirds or pheasants. But the pieces most likely to justify what will presumably carry very steep price tags? The “gold leafed” dresses with the aforementioned layers of feather cut silk that took the concept of metallics to a whole new level: These pretty much looked dipped in liquid gold. If you want to send a clear message about your better-then-average financial status, this is the dress to don. Looks like the infusion of cash from a new investor really paid off.
There were a few things that didn't work quite as well, like the looks in a shade of marigold that seemed more appropriate for a grandmother's ancient sofa or ‘70s lampshade. The bubble hem on a white shirtdress, used again on a wood beaded linen dress (worn by model of the moment Agyness Dean) also destroyed the otherwise crisp geometric lines prevalent elsewhere that made this collection so appealing.
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