Top Spring 2011 Collections part. 2

6.-Balenciaga:

Nicolas Ghuèsquiere presented the most urban collection yet to the house he is in charge of. That in no case meant less luxury, just that inspiration clearly came from punk and rock. Houndstooth was stretched into a big motif that covered coats, square long vests and skirts. Then short leather jackets were paired with long blouses and ankle length black pants with flat black shoes. It was the most masculine show I could think of from Balenciaga, but the result was intriguing and very well accomplished.

7.-Jil Sander:

Raf Simons is in a good place at Jil Sander, the last collection was interesting, but this time he decided to use bright colors, kind of his thing and the result was amazing. Puffy long skirts with simple white tees where the first to come out, then some long dresses with round puffy skirts and last separates, anoraks, jackets, trousers and more skirts with long coats. Imagine all of this pieces in the most basic hues, yellow, tangerine, grape, raspberry, and a vibrant oversized flower print. Raf Simons said he inspired in couture as a response to minimalism, and the silhouettes were somewhere in that level, but it still was clean look, where less is more.

8.-Lanvin:

Here is where all I write gets less formal and it's just pure love, look at the pictures above and everyone can immediately get the appeal of the clothes. The show was as summery and feminine as Lanvin can get, but it was still strong and minimal, all of the embroidery was almost gone. The textures and the color palette had a wide range but overall let's say he did tan, nude, brown, beige, red, raspberry, midnight blue and some neon hues with black. That's all...

9.-Rick Owens:

Everyone said this show was all about maturity and restraint, it's true. Rick Owens a famous designer for the younger fashion crowd has proven his aesthetic season after season, but this show was much needed, the models came out in a simpler hair do and makeup letting you really notice the clothes. A lot of long skirts and dresses also came in less intricate silhouettes, but the necklines and details in each garment could tell you it was signature Owens.

10.-Junya Watanabe:

He made an essay out of nautical stripes, along with printed marine motifs and complementary straw hats. The collection had great wearable pieces, something hard to find sometimes in Junya's conceptual shows, but it never demeaned the overall strength of the show. It was truly creative since stripes have been everywhere and almost all has been already shown, but the way he played with all the different lengths and layers left room for interpretation, some even assumed it was also jail uniform inspired.