Louis Vuitton Fall Winter 2010: full skirts and nipped in waists.

I am sensing that for the first time in many years, there are going to be some big changes taking place in the fashion industry. After years of debating on the size zero issue, it seems that designers are finally starting to make changes, not just for their image, but for their customer. There’s been complaints about the size of models for some time, I’ve covered it in my blog a few times, and it’s a topic of great debate in the media. Just as the issue was beginning to dominate the fashion press, the Fall Winter 2010 shows took place, and suddenly some of the top catwalks featured models that were almost normal. (I say almost normal, although these girls are size 4’s which is far from a normal size, but much more achievable than a size 0.)

Calvin Klein’s Francisco Costa also addressed the issue, by announcing they will be using less size 0 models, and more size 2’s and 4’s. Here’s a an interesting quote by him, from The Cut:

“We do what we feel is right for the brand. And I just feel that my customer is a real woman. She’s not 14 years old, she’s not 16 years old, so what I’m trying to do is cast models who are a little bit closer to my reality, a person who goes to my store. The reaction is really to emphasize the customer, the need for the clothes to have that immediate sort of emotion to those who would buy it.”

Prada Fall Winter 2010: curvaceous women.

I remember when I had my lingerie company, and we were developing swimwear, the buyers told us to shoot our pieces on curvy women. Not only do they look better in swimwear (you don’t see many hips protruding on the Victoria’s Secret girls, do you?) but the product also sold better when it was represented on someone who the customers could relate to. Why isn’t it the same with fashion? I have to admit, that some of the brands I really like would not look the same if they used curvy women in their campaigns, but most brands wouldn’t be doing themselves damage if they chose girls with a bit of flesh on their bones. And I think the main issue driving this change (aside from the media coverage it gets) is the fact that the new fashion trends look better on a curvy figure.

I’ve featured some images from Louis Vuitton, Marc Jacobs, and Prada Fall Winter 2010 in this post, and they have all shown curvier silhouettes, with an emphasis of the waist. The models are also remarkably curvier, and more womanly. When I was reflecting on the Fall Winter shows, the word “matronly” or “school teacher” kept coming to mind, and I really think that some of the above and below looks fit this description.

Marc Jacobs Fall Winter 2010: sensible hemlines and footwear.

The body-conscious trend (think Herve Leger bandage dresses) or the cocoon, over sized trend (think Acne tees) weren’t as likely to be picked up by a curvy figure, but the Fall Winter catwalks featured clothing that looks good on a woman with a bust and butt. With regards to the industry, the most important thing is whether this will increase sales, and that is why I am particularly interested in what Costa said. He is addressing the business benefits of this shift, and that’s what everyone wants to hear: it will make your customers happier, and they will buy more.

“I don’t think we can ignore anyone,” he said. “We are in the business to sell clothes and we are going to cater to everyone who likes the appeal of our clothes.” But Costa thinks it’s time to step away from the waif image Calvin Klein started when he cast Kate Moss in CK Jeans ads. “[The waif look] is just historically what Calvin did. And we’re just in different times and we don’t want to change what was done; what was done was perfect. Calvin is genius. I just want to bring a little bit of newness to today.” (Also from The Cut.)

If anything, its exciting that there’s change, and I can pull out all my old 60’s clothes.

Fall Winter 2010: A very thin model at Hervé Léger.

A few days into New York fashion week, and the models are looking scarily thin. I always felt that this was something we saw more of in New York, and so I really hope there will be some meatier flesh in London, Milan, and Paris. Model’s weight has been a major discussion point recently, and I am pretty torn on the subject. Although I feel that the whole size zero debate is blown out of proportion, and that the media should focus more on obesity, there are clearly some very scarily thin girls on the catwalks.

There’s been some really interesting points made in the press recently, starting with this quote featured in a VERY interesting The Daily Beast article about models and size. A former successful model was quoted as saying:

“Sure, we had to be skinny. I lived on Diet Coke and apples for two years. For the couture, we had to get up at 4 am to be sewn into the clothes and there was huge pressure to be thin. But I made a million dollars by the time I was 20, I bought a town house in Manhattan and put myself through Columbia. Does that make me a victim?”

This was a really interesting quote, putting a totally new perspective on starving models.

According to Fashionologie, Australian model Abbie Lee Kershaw “seems to feel similarly when asked what she thinks about the pressure to be ultra-thin: ‘That’s like asking a bodybuilder how they feel about the pressures to be incredibly muscly. An elite performer is always put under some sort of extreme pressure that the rest of society can argue, might not quite understand.’”

Fall Winter 2010: another very thin model at Victoria Beckham.

So after considering these two interesting quotes, how important do you think the size zero issue is? Are models to blame, or is Hollywood worse? I feel that celebrities have much more of an impact on young people than models do, as they tend to be much more in the public eye. Later on in the Daily Beast article, they explain that according to “Clinical Knowledge Summaries 2009, the statistics department of the British National Institute of Health and Clinical Excellence, says that 19 out of one million women are diagnosed as anorexic, as opposed to 240,000 per million for obesity.” That statistic really confirmed my thoughts that under-eating is much smaller a problem than over-eating.

On the other hand, there was a really upsetting article in Page Six Magazine about Gemma Ward, another Australian model, who has recently put on 30 pounds and has been shunned by the industry. Apparently there are many teenage models, who are discarded once they experience the natural weight gain women go through when they grow breasts and hips.

Gemma Ward at the height of her fame.

I really don’t know where I stand on this subject. I do know that when I worked in Paris, samples sizes were in 4 and 6, never size 0. But I also worked with a lot of the Brazilian models, who were very curvy. I always thought a curvy size 4 model looks better than a stick thin size zero. I feel it is sad that some models feel such a pressure to stay thin, but at the same time, I believe it is part of the job. I was watching a program about skiers competing in moguls this weekend, and apparently their quads are four times the size of a normal person, and the damage they do to their knees is irreversible. They are guaranteed serious problems later in life, so how is that any different from starving yourself for a few years to make some money?

A more recent photo of Gemma Ward.

Forbes has a list of the top fifteen highest earning models, and many of them are curvy lingerie models (Gisele Bundchen, Adriana Lima, Alessandra Ambrosio are all Victoria’s Secret models, and they make up the top five with Kate Moss and Heidi Klum.) It goes to show that a hot, healthy body is going to earn you more millions than protruding hip bones.

One thing I would like to see is more models and celebrities endorsing fitness, which is beneficial for both the underweights and the overweights. I’d also like to see less deathly thin models on the catwalk, and more Gisele types. And, how about the media reduces their attacks on famous women for being too thin or too fat. That would be a good start.

Gemma Ward images source. Catwalk images from Style.com.

Hervé Léger and Max Azria deserve each other. Hervé Léger trained with Azzedine Alaïa, then started his own brand, which was basically a copy of everything Alaïa did. Can I just clarify that Azzedine Alaïa, NOT Hervé Léger, was considered the “King of Cling” and it is Alaïa who pretty much invented the body con dress. Alaïa also did the bandage dress first! Now, the Hervé Léger brand is living off the bandage dress, probably because Max Azria is a fast fashion designer (see BCBG) not luxury. Maybe Victoria Beckham and Hervé Léger can merge into one brand, make a tight dress, and sell that one same dress every season, over and over again.

I Love…

the sleeve details on this jacket.

the fins on this skirt, the bodice seams and the sleeve. If you are going to make a tight dress over and over again, may as well do something with it.

I Loathe…

that this knit detail is signature Alaia, yet Herve Leger is still blatantly copying him on the catwalk.

the bandage dress. SO over. Can we please move on?

All images from Style.com.

I had a really interesting conversation with my friends on Saturday night, about fashion and brands. The subject turned to Hermes, which I believe is an untouchable brand, despite the fact that it has become a lot more mainstream in recent years. We then disucssed the fact that many brands have been “ruined” when they hit the mainstream. As far as I am concerned, when Victoria Beckham wears it, or when it is mentioned in a rap song, the brand is over. Hermes is an exception.

Even Victoria Beckham can't ruin Hermes (images from www.pursepage.com)

Why is this? How has Hermes managed to maintain this powerful brand position? They have superior quality, longevity, classic pieces, and waiting lists, but so do many other brands. On the other hand, Balmain (ruined by the “Russians” apparently), Jimmy Choo, Herve Leger, and Christian Louboutin have been tainted by over exposure on celebrities.

Another thing we discussed is the power of the handbag. For some ridiculous, unexplainable reason I always feel I need to buy a handbag from a well-known luxury brand, however, I am happy to spend fortunes on clothing or shoes from smaller luxury brands that are not very mainstream at all (Finsk being my main example.) I don’t understand why I feel that way… Maybe because I use a handbag everyday for two years, whereas I don’t wear the same shoes more than once a week. Maybe because a great luxury handbag can make a 20 dollar outfit look like a 2000 dollar outfit.

I don’t have the answers, but here are some of the Hermes pieces I wouldn’t mind finding underneath my Christmas tree (hint hint husband.)

Images from www.hermes.com