Narciso Rodriguez Fall 2013

Just breathe.

The Gilded Life

My best fashion moment was in 1996, when Karl took over the entire first-floor Imperial Suite for his couture show, to observe the twenty-fifth anniversary of Mademoiselle Coco's death.  He had two shows that brisk January day, and between them Naomi Campbell, Shalom Harlow, and Kate Moss came to my room--a simple one with two armchairs and the bed in a neoclassical alcove--and took naps.  Karl and I walked in to find them all lined up asleep under layers of fine pique sheets, like fairy princesses, false eyelashes still in place.

-Andre Leon Talley (who else?) in Vogue 

Tax return

Acne bag, Balenciaga boot, me for spring/summer 2012

Grenades in bloom

Tilda Lindstam

Kasia Strauss

Julia Nobis

Nadja Bender

Romee Strijd

Kati Nescher

Frida Gustavsson

Nimue Smit

Jac

Sarah Burton's fall 2012 women were like high fashion super heroes, with sci-fi chrome visors, Batman-like belt buckles to be winged at an enemy or clasped to a zip line, protective capes and fortress-like furs.  I could even imagine some of the closing frocks as like a porcupine's, or some deep sea creature's, defense system -- explode your spikes to deliver the final blow.  Still there was something delicate, beautiful.  That seems to be the sort of McQueen ethos that Burton has carried on so masterfully and effortlessly - the juxtaposition, or perhaps marriage, of fierce strength and exquisite fragility.

An opulent crush

Nadja

Julia F.

Daria

Bette

Zuzanna

Jasmine

Magdalena

Anibela

Olivier

I've decided it would be just about right for me to date Olivier Rousteing, the handsome 26-year old Parisian designer fresh off his second season at the helm of Balmain.  The collection ditched a lot of the obnoxious, Euro-trashy feel of the later Decarnin collections - when cliched torn up t-shirts went for nearly $1,000 - and brought back the sense of chic, over-the-top luxury and fun that re-made the brand at the end of the aughts.   Though this time, there was just a touch of elegance, and that's a difficult balance to strike--in fashion and in a boyfriend.

Winning looks

My favorite looks from the the 84th Annual Academy Awards in Los Angeles, California: Meryl Streep and Pharrell Williams, both in Lanvin.

Petal soft

You'll see Raf Simons's final collection for Jil Sander everywhere, and you should take a closer look, but I wanted to comment on the soft beauty of the opening looks, and the correspondingly gorgeous floral arrangements presented--preserved?--in lucite on the runway.  A burst of blossoms is a suitable symbol for Simons's work at Jil Sander over the years, and surely he'll bloom on.

Fall'12 Favorites: Calvin Klein Collection

Smart, precise, forward-thinking, investment-worthy clothing; black and white and red all over (I couldn't resist).