L’Wren Scott Fall Winter 2010

Posted on February 19, 2010 by Alexandra

NOTE: I wrote this post, published it, and then realised that most of it had disappeared. So I am rewriting it. Apologies to those of you that got a one paragraph, unfinished blog post.

I have always be quite critical and blunt when I don’t like something, and I always get a bit scared when I look at L’Wren Scott‘s shows. I want to love them because one of my best friends is involved in the brand, but sometimes that is not the case. L’Wren Scott, like Marchesa, is a brand that is what it is because of famous connections, this time in the form of another famous boyfriend, Mick Jagger from the Rolling Stones. This doesn’t mean her collections are not nice, on the contrary, there are some beautifully made pieces, but I just don’t feel she would be around if it weren’t for her celebrity connections.

On that note, L’Wren collections have some strengths: the materials are top notch, the embellishments are beautiful, and the construction is sublime. Her shoes are amazing. It is all very polished. But aside from the garments themselves, there is a lot lacking: the styling is weak, the historical references look fine on the individual garments, but combined with the tacky styling, it goes too far. And I wonder whether this is a vanity project for her, or something she truly plans on turning into a viable fashion business. Because if she wants this to be a serious business, she needs to know that inviting a bunch of celebrities to her show is not going to suffice. Why has the website had a holding page for the past few years? Where is the L’Wren Scott Twitter (THAT would be good)? Where are the retail promotions? The strong brand identity? In fact, what IS the brand identity? These are things to consider if the brand is to grow.

I Love…

the beautiful embellishment on this dress, and the surprising contrast in colours.

the gentle military influence on this beautiful dress.

these boots, god I love these boots. And the sexy sweater dress is pretty hot too.

I Loathe…

this hat. It looks way too costume-y with the velvet jacket.

another silly hat worn with a predictable dress.

Images from Style.com.

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  • florence schlegel

    my dear Alex,
    as you probably expected I need to reply to your post on L’Wren Scott collection as I work on the designs for more than 3 years now
    I respect your opinion but I need to clarify a few points
    the most important ones being :

    1- you say we get coverage of the collection and recognition because of L’Wren celebrity or important contacts and that the brand might be not out there if was not for the above reasons mentionned
    this is NOT true
    it helped the brand to be known faster for sure
    but I dont think the brand will still live after almost 4 years if we were depending only on that
    the journalist tend to talk about celebrities coming to our shows, or about her dating Mick jagger because it s part of the game and they love that but can you tell me in which big show you dont see celebrities showing up now? and being photographed more than the clothes themselves
    what is not mentionned here is in the real crowd that counts coming to the show
    we have the most recognized fashion journalists or editors in the world
    Cathy Horyn from NY times
    Suzy Menkes from Herald Tribune
    Virgine Mouzat from Le Figaro
    Anna Wintour from US Vogue
    Carine Roitfeld from french Vogue
    etc etc….
    do you really think those people would loose their precious time to come to a show that is not worth beeing seen
    and coming each time if they thought they did not need to see it
    by the way, please read the Cathy review, she is known as one of the best and most frank and scary journalist in the business, always saying what she thinks, not being afraid of making ennemies among the designers
    why would she say the show is really good if she did not mean it?

    2-the lack or weak or tacky styling
    I honestly dont understand what you are talking about
    L’Wren is one of the most recognized stylist in the profession, which she is for more than 15years and that is the whole reason why wo got trust when she started the brand

    3-the website, you are right we need one
    but being a very small team, none of us had time to work on it seriously, we are now for the last months and it will be up very shortly

    4-by the way, the hats are from Stephen Jones and the reason why they have their place in the show is , you might not know, but the collection (as we always do give names) is called tuxedo terrace , that is why we designed w/ Stephen a funky top hat in L’Wren style, very feminine

    finally I just would like to say, the brand has no pretention of revolutionning fashion history, but we make beautiful clothes , amazingly done in term of quality, trying to make women look beautiful and feeling beautiful and not the opposite like some brands I wont name
    and of top quality (go once to look at an inside of one of our dress and you ll undertsand what I mean) so when you spend a certain amount of money, you know where it goes
    not like some clothes sometimes where I wonder why a piece of lining with no hem cost so much…

    please to all, forgive my english writing
    probably many mistakes in this post but english is not my mothertongue

    thank you for having taken the time to read my comment
    florence

  • http://www.searchingforstyle.com alexandrasuhner

    Florence, thanks for your comment. I don’t think there is anything wrong with a brand that does not revolutionize fashion, and opts simply to make beautiful clothing. I know that L’Wren’s clothing is beautifully made, which was made obvious to me when I saw the product in Dover Street Market. I do think, and I said this in my review, that there are many beautiful pieces in the collection, and I trust when you say that the quality is excellent.

    But I stand by my thoughts that the brand would not have this continued support were it not for the celebrity connections that L’Wren has. It isn’t enough in the fashion world to simply make beautiful clothing. The fashion industry is fickle, and brands come and go very quickly, unless they manage to hold the media’s attention. For example, look at Zac Posen and Jonathon Saunders. They are both excellent designers, who got a lot of hype at the beginning, but now are losing momentum. I don’t think they are any less talented that L’Wren Scott, but without the continued support of the celebrities, the brands are failing to stay in the limelight.

    It is impossible to ignore that L’Wren’s shows have serious Hollywood A-listers, and yes, so do a lot of the other brands, but you don’t see many small young brands without this type of celebrity presence. With regards to the celebrities wearing her clothes…I am not surprised they are. The clothes are beautiful, and a lot of the collection is ideal for red carpet events, but I don’t think these outfits would have been considered as an option for the celebrities had there not been the personal connection with L’Wren. When the Armanis of the world are paying big bucks for celebs to wear their clothing on the red carpet, it is very hard to get a small brand in there, and the personal connection is certainly key.

    I believe the brand gets good reviews because the clothing is beautiful and well-designed, but I just don’t think you would get the Suzy Menkes and Cathy Horyns turning up if it weren’t for the celebrity connections. It makes the brand impossible to ignore. There are many beautiful fashion brands brands that don’t get reviewed by Suzy and Cathy because they don’t have the media attention to put them into the limelight. I don’t think L’Wren is getting good reviews because she is famous, I think she merits the good reviews she gets, based on the clothing, but I don’t think the journos would have continued to turn up if the brand didn’t have the Hollywood heavy-weights behind it.

    With regards to the styling, it is a personal thing, but I don’t like it. I think the hats look tacky and the looks feel contrived. I feel the stiff necklines, the gloves, the slick hair, and the hats make everything look too formal. The clothing is very slick and tight and serious, added to the formal styling, and I think it is too much. But that is my opinion, and I am sure L’Wren would not have had a career as a celebrity stylist if she hadn’t done a very good job, so that it comes down to here is my opinion. And I feel I need to be honest about my opinion, to maintain my integrity as a blogger, even if the opinion is negative.

    While we are on the subject of the hats…how many three year old brands have the opportunity to work with Stephen Jones or Christian Louboutin (don’t know if he is still doing the shoes, but I know he was)? Although the collection are beautifully made and look great, I think these talents have come on board because L’Wren is famous.

    The fashion industry is about survival of the fittest, and I don’t think it is “unfair” that L’Wren Scott gets a better chance than other designers because she has the celebrity connections. This is how the industry works, and always has: it is all about who you know. But there is no doubt in my mind that L’Wren has had a better chance, and the fashion industry is a bit nicer to her because of her boyfriend and her celebrity friends. Despite all of this, she has still managed to make some beautiful clothing in the past few years, and that in itself is a tough ting to do, so well done to her and her team.

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