A little 30 Rock should knock this collection back into shape

Punk initially appeared to be a main theme for Balenciaga mixed with traditional labour-intensive couture techniques.

It’s not obvious punk. There’s not a single stud or safety pin in sight but there is leather, grommets, houndstooth and romper stomper boots. What’s interesting is that you can pick out the punk references but the overall look is decidedly free of aggression. So it’s not really punk at all. I still don’t know what it is. The woman in this collection is strong but she’s romantic too. You just need to look for those traits.

Overall it fell a bit flat and well, a little boring. I know if I were to see these clothes in person I’d have an aneurysm because they’re so beautifully made and I love Nicolas Ghesquiere. He’s a fucking genius and a fashion legend. I would have one of these if I ever met him.

Followed by this 

The red and black plasticky houndstooth gave me flashbacks of Prada’s horrid Fall 2010 bags which is purely coincidental but nonetheless unfortunate. The shoes were designed by long-time collaborator Pierre Hardy. They were all flat Doc Marten inspired boots which were nice but I die for his heels. The collection also-unfairly in my opinion- drew comparison to Comme Des Garcons. Unfair because some people wrote it off instantly as homage but I think these conclusions were lazy and inevitable. If he’d done skulls would he have been ripping off McQueen? But perhaps the derision was earned. Ghesquiere has been known on more than one occasion to steal from other designers work.

Fucking hideous

The highlights of the show were the jackets and the shirts. The vivid blue reptile skin jackets (what the hell was that?) are going to be bestsellers. They were new yet still had a recognizable Ghesquiere silhouette with that raised shoulder. The shirts had elongated tails in the front. Ghesquiere managed to make something as informal as an untucked shirt look chic and smart. The fabrics were baffling. Were the black dots printed? Applique? The lace. Was it hand painted or done by machine? Though the collection had some bright moments, Ghesquiere got too carried away and geeked out on fabric technology. If clothes make you feel something then does it matter if it was printed, painted or machine made?