Thakoon Spring Summer 2013 Review

Above: Beautiful, imaginative, striking. Below: No!!! Stop it. This is not fashion.

Thakoon Panichgul’s spring summer show was perplexing. It opened with a dreamy white strapless dress that had a print of a golden birdcage matched perfectly with the cut of the dress. The cage had birds, butterflies and flowers bursting from it. The first four looks featured this print on tops, jackets, and skirts but the rest of the collection looked like it had been designed by someone else and was derivative of so many designers.

 Instead of seeing originality I saw a pick n mix of popular looks from other designers such as the criss cross wrap top with midriff peekaboo. While not revolutionary, Prada did the same thing three years ago as well as Proenza Schouler last season. Same goes for the oversize pailettes on skirts (Prada, Christopher Kane, Stella McCartney). While a lot of these looks were pretty and will most likely sell I don’t feel that ¾ of this show is the work of a strong designer because I don’t see an independent voice. But based on those first four looks I don’t think Thakoon will be going out business any time soon. 

Below: Vibes from other designers. Clockwise from left: Christopher Kane, Prada, Prada, Balenciaga

Christopher Kane Spring Summer 2012 Review

 Above centre: look 5. No.

I don’t know about this collection. Couture meets sports. Americans have been doing this for years. I loved his earlier stuff because it looked more experimental and now that he’s a got a following I’m gonna take a stab and say he’s trying to be more commercial and tone down the crazy a bit. But he’s always been fairly commercial anyway so maybe I don’t know what I’m talking about.
 As far as first looks go the collection is simple. I know that it’s not upon closer inspection but I think it still looks basic and well, boring. The 60’s shapes were a snooze. There were nice cuts thanks to some expert pattern making and they fit quite nicely with what other designers such as Prabal Gurung are doing. There were plenty of splits and slices but it was all too rigid and looked uncomfortable to wear.
The knitwear. No. The fit was terrible and why would anyone buy this when they can get something similar from an op shop for a dollar? If it’s knit from the tears of an arctic fox then I’ll make an exception, otherwise it’s just merino wool cricket attire.
I love the ideas in this collection what I don’t like is the execution. There were flowers that looked like giant stickers and they were rimmed in reflective silver, just like something you’d find at a stationery shop. The sandals were amazing. Like high fashion tourist slides, perfect for the beach and then buying cheap cocktails that get served in a bucket and then you drink too much and then someone offers you drugs and you’re all like well I am on holiday so I should live a little so you do and then you wake up in a urine-soaked hammock on the beach. Potentially awkward but you've got your Christopher Kane slides so whatever fuck you.

Look five is one of the ugliest jackets I’ve seen. There was the double split skirt which has popped up in a few collections and I loved it. Then it got all old school 50’s couture with Swarovski crystals. Meh. Took 45 hours to bead that top? Meh. And the oversized lapel-like shapes. Blargh. Do not want. Any woman with tits can cross that off their list. Fingers crossed Jade Parfitt will be on hand to slink into it. I just don’t know. I think I need to let this one simmer a bit more because there’s potential that in a month I’ll take back everything bad I said about it and then brand it a triumph.

Burberry Prorsum Spring Summer 2012 Review

 Above: Gettin some Marc Jacobs vibez. That skirt/shirt combo centre is flawless

 Above: The centre coat is giving me 90's memories of sack tops worn by bogans. It would usually have a Jim Beam print on the front. Stay classy 90's. 

Above from left: The below the knee skirt with buttons and pleats oh my!, centre: Giving me mass Proenza vibez but it's less tricky. Right: That shrunken jacket is parfait. I want one. I want ten.

Coincidentally, Burberry Prorsum looked like a culmination of ideas from some of the New York collections. I was seeing Proenza Schouler (the colours, the stripes, Rodarte (that cutaway skirt) and Marc Jacobs (poufy prom dress shapes).

It was an easily digestible trend: Tribal. I'm sure there was a specific artist or whatever that inspired Bailey but at the end of the day the consumer doesn't see that, they just see tribal. Thank god he let go of the studded, spiky jacket thing he did for far too long in seasons past.

Sorry if these London reviews are short and scarce. I think I'll try and do a condensed overview of what I liked eg. those Teva sports sandals at Christopher Kane. Deying/creying.

BRING ON MILAN

Christopher Kane Loves Triangles. Somebody call the hipster police

Glitter corsets were dished up with a sea of black leather and wool for Versus fall 2011. If someone told you they wanted the boning in their corset to be coated in glitter you'd probably ask where they buy their crack and make a mental note to hide the hot glue gun and macaroni elbows.
But Christopher Kane (and sibling partner in fashion crime Tammy Kane) is one of those designers that you have to trust because he knows how to handle some janky fabrics. Take a look at his own line for fall and you'll see crochet blanket inspired skirts and plastic trimmed dresses filled with sparkly liquid. On paper his work is highly questionable but once you see it you die.
The collection also featured a glitter triangle print so it's hipster approved because hipsters fucking love triangles.

Ya, I'm much totes jello

That's my friend Miranda subtly reminding me she was in London for fashion week. I asked if she stole locks of their hair and I'm waiting for a response. 

Tripped Out Royals

We all know what it’s like to slave away at something for hours only to have people be like, oh yeah that’s nice. Inside you’re like that took fucking hours you cunt. That’s what I felt when I looked at Christopher Kane’s Spring 2011 show.

The inspiration was Princess Margaret in her youth on acid or a royal on crack. This appeared to be the inspiration for 80% of the collection and the other 20% went to tattooed yakuza wives.

There were skirts and jackets in laser-cut leather and they just didn’t quite impress even though they should have. Not only did they not sit well but they looked reminiscent of those plastic tablecloths you buy off the roll at Spotlight.* You’ve got this jacket and it’s like ooh, intricate, delicate leather but no, sorry, tablecloth jacket. From 2002.
Things improved though when Kane sent out trippy neon lace dresses with beautiful knife pleat details.
The pleating appeared heavily throughout the show and it looked flawless particularly on the dresses and a neon yellow blouse.
The biggest problem I have with this collection is I feel like Kane started off with an idea that wasn’t thoroughly expanded upon. I also don’t feel that enough of the clothes screamed buy me and they should have. A neon twin-set should leap out and smack you square in the face but it didn’t. Why is that?**
These clothes needed bags too. Everything was so lady-like that the overall look felt bare and unfinished. A batshit crazy nana handbag would’ve been perfect but Christopher Kane the brand (and the designer too) is young and leather goods are a few years off. Hopefully not too far though. Perhaps a little help from Kane’s fairy godmother Donatella Versace will get the accessories ball rolling.


Ps, I totes would’ve taken Princess Anne over Margaret ANY. DAY.

*Turns out the leather was vinyl coated to make it pleather-esque. Isn't he wicked?
**Because I’m an overcritical wankface. But I fucking love Christopher Kane. Spring 2009? It was pretty very.

pps, another reference in the collection was Cyberdog, hence the neons.

Repetitive at Christopher Kane

Fall 2010 was highly repetitive and was a series of variations on the same outfit: a neat-fitting dress. This dress came with long sleeves, short sleeves and no sleeves. It came with a two piece collar, a two piece collar with placket or no collar at all. It was the same dress with the same fit.

These were done in either black leather, patent leather and black lace or a combination of all three. It was all quite boring really. Beautiful but tedious. Usually florals soften a look but in Kane’s case they didn’t. Embroidered sprays of flowers appeared on various parts of the clothes such as collars, cuffs and breasts.

I’m not sure if he was short on ideas or just metering them out to make a bold statement.

Though it was cool it just didn’t grab me like his other collections such as spring 09. It wasn’t as disappointing as spring 2010 but it was pretty close.

VERSUS SPRING 2010

I always find the relationship between Donatella Versace and Christopher Kane quite odd. On the surface she seems so uber-freak and he so geeky Scottish dude that I can’t connect the dots. For Kane’s debut collection back in Spring 2007, Versace donated shoes for the show. She’s now found solid faith in his work that he now designs Versus, which was Donatella’s baby back in the days when Gianni Versace was still alive.
I think it’s great that Versus is back and Kane did a nice collection of short, sexy dresses with cut-outs and those ubiquitous safety pins that launched the career of Elizabeth Hurley all those years ago. The most interesting feature was a sleeve that had the top layer cut out only leaving the underside still intact. It was quite a dressmaking feat, even Kane had to admit he couldn’t have made something like that in London. This is definitely the beginning of something special.