Hussein Chalayan usually puts on theatrical catwalk shows with unbelievable show pieces. This season’s collection was a lot more tame and wearable, so perhaps not as exciting to see as a show, but certainly a lot more to chose from if you want to wear Hussein Chalayan without needing batteries.

I Love…

a giant tailored mens coat.

a sweatshirt dress with great shoulders.

the perfect camel coat. The cut is very traditional, but the low button placement and round pocket shapes make it unique.

a hooded, full-length evening dress that doesn't look too red carpet.

I Loathe…

these tacky fabrics.

All images from Style.com.

The fashion news of the day is that Puma has sold its majority stake in the Hussein Chalayan brand back to Hussein Chalayan himself. However, he will apparently stay on as Creative Director at Puma.

I thought this was pretty interesting. When Puma bought a majority stake in Hussein Chalayan in 2008, we presumed the brand would become a bit more commercial, and at the same time, Puma would become more exciting because Hussein was going to be the Creative Director. The fact that he bought his company back, would imply that he wasn’t happy with the arrangement, but since he is staying on at Puma, I’m guessing there are other reasons behind todays. news, and maybe this was part of the original plan.

Hussein Chalayan is another one of London’s super edgy designers, although he is from a Turkish background. His career has been bumpy, because he has often refused to do many commercial products, and therefore has often been tight on cash. He is best know for his incredible fashion shows, but some of his other career highlights included designing clothes for Björk, working with TSE cashmere, designing for Marks and Spencer, and receiving and OBE from the Queen (Order of the British Empire.) I also found this quote on Wikipedia: “A passionate fashion designer, Chalayan has made his feelings for celebrity-based fashion clear when he publicly announced how he felt about Kate Moss’s collaboration with high-street clothing label Top Shop, calling the move ‘insulting’” Go Hussein!

Puma is also a really cool brand, when it comes to sportswear. They have always been the edgier than their competitors, and I feel that in many ways they have more integrity than Nike, Adidas or Reebok. Puma is more of a fashion designer’s brand than the others. They dedicate their efforts targeting the early adopter community (the cool people who pick up trends first) instead of the mainstream, which means their products are usually more interesting and innovative. It made sense when Puma and Hussein Chalayan joined forces, as Puma would benefit from his creativity, he would benefit from their cash, and the brands would not clash. By the way, Puma is controlled by Gucci Group PPR, so there was also the involvement of a luxury conglomerate.

It will be interesting to see what happens with the brand now. I hope he works on expanding his diffusion line, Chalayan, and widening the stockists, so we can buy it in Vancouver. Let’s look at some pictures from Hussein Chalayan’s collections.

Hussein Chalayan Spring Summer 1998. This show caused a lot of controversy, for obvious reasons.

Hussein Chalayan Autumn Winter 1998

Hussein Chalayan Spring Summer 1999

Hussein Chalayan Autumn Winter 1999. The last two images show the dress as it opens up.

Hussein Chalayan Spring Summer 2000. Second and third rows down show another dress opening up.

Hussein Chalayan Autumn Winter 2000. This incredible collection shows a set of living room furniture turning into clothing, the highlight being the coffee table turned skirt at the end

Hussein Chalayan Spring Summer 2007 featuring the famous Bubble dress.

Hussein Chalayan Spring Summer 2009.

And here’s a little bit of interesting information about Puma. Their red Clyde shoe was considered to be the shoe of the best breakdancers in the 1980s. In fact, you couldn’t wear this shoes unless you were one of the best, it was a status shoe. Here’s a image and some more info from the Classic Sports Shoes website.

“Definitely the most legendary and popular Puma style of all time, this classic has a place in history and in every Hall of Fame. At the 1968 Olympics, the newly released Puma Suede was worn by Tommie Smith, the prominent Olympic athlete, when he took to the Olympic awards podium with one fist held defiantly in the air.

Walt Frazier wore this style in the 1980’s and this shoe became known as the “Clyde”.

The Suede is widely regarded as the original B-Boy shoe. It was made famous by early break dancing crews, such as the New York City Breakers and the Rock Steady Crew, who rocked them religiously at early Hip-Hop jams in New York City.”

Catwalk images from Hussein Chalayan’s Website.