Stefano Pilati out at Yves Saint Laurent

Above: Stefano Pilati reacting to the news that he's been let go. I'm kidding, but seriously dude, why the long face?

Stefano Pilati's contract at YSL has not been renewed. Major sads. The fall 2012 collection will be his last and his successor will be named after the show. Rumoured to take over is Hedi Slimane. Pilati has been head designer at YSL since spring 2005. In that time he's raised the profile of the brand which has finally broken even after years of debt. Below are some of my favourite looks over the years.

Above: Spring 2005. A strong debut sets the tulip/bubble skirt trend.

Above: Fall 2005. Mariacarla Boscono in a cropped le smoking. This collection set off the trend for platform shoes.  

Above: Spring 2006

 Above: Fall 2008 featured Pilati's best cut pants that were full at the waist and cropped above the ankle. If you watch the show on Youtube a lot of the clothes in this collection appear to float around the body.

Above: Spring 2008 had wide-shouldered looks and brilliant use of colour.

Yves Saint Laurent SS 2012 Review

Summing up this collection in one word is easy: Uptight. I've loved Stefano Pilati since he started out at YSL. He restored French elegance and gave dignity back to the YSL brand after what many considered a crude butchering by Tom Ford. Over the years Pilati has quietly spawned trends but never quite got the kudos for it. It seemed like every collection he designed had something that editors and buyers went crazy over but it's rarely been the clothes. For spring 2012 the stand out piece from the entire collection were the shoes. A nice suede heel with a curved gold plate mounted to the front is the shoe of the season but the clothes are falling by the wayside yet again.
Unfortunately when the clothes are noticeably forgettable it reinforces the rumours that Pilati will be dropped from the house at any moment. And I feel sorry for the guy because he designs beautiful elegant clothes but are they too elegant? I know that may sound like a stupid question but I think Pilati needs to shock and not let the shadow of YSL hang over him. I think he's trying so hard to maintain the YSL woman that it's getting in the way of designing interesting clothes.

The wrap-style tops were the highlight as was look 29, a flawless baby-doll style dress in midnight blue. The let downs were the ruffled dresses in pine needle green and some 70's boho hippie-trail skirts and dresses.
Pilati needs to be less afraid of doing straight-forward sex. Instead he piles a shapeless coat on a model with bare legs and thinks it's unexpectedly erogenous but it's not working anymore. Hopefully in the coming seasons YSL will be summed up in two words: must have.

Raf Simons Taking Over at Yves Saint Laurent?

If Raf Simons ultimately takes over the helm at Yves Saint Laurent — as those familiar with the situation in Paris suggest — the designer will have found a sweet spot for his meticulous modernism.-Suzy Menkes, journalist, gossip mongerer
[nytimes]


Can this just not be true? Raf Simons is one of the best designers in the business right now but Stefano Pilati does wonderful things for YSL. I know Pilati doesn't grab headlines like Miuccia Prada or Marc Jacobs but his clothes do the talking. It's quiet, modern elegance.

NVR 4GET

UPDATE!!!

The rumors are false. Stefano to stay at YSL

*sing* Under da sea

The resort collections for 2012 have been quite hilarious. It's like, okay we get it, it's summer so we should be at the beach but whaddya want me to do, wear scuba gear? Fuck yes say a dick-load of designers. 

Ursula. Clearly excited by resort 2012

The whole time I was shopping these images I had that crab Sebastian from The Little Mermaid singing Under The Sea stuck in my head.

 

Under the seeeeeea

Under the seeeeeeea

Under the sea something you and me under the sea

I'm certain those are the lyrics. Ariel would be proud. 

First up...McQ, the Alexander McQueen diffusion line

Alexander Wangs urban sporty swimwear awesomeness

And Stefano Pilati did rope printed skirts and anchor charms. You want these clothes? Well stay away from the buffet when your on that cruise ship yo. 

She Said What?

Marc Jacobs on critics:

"You are dealing with a whole lot of highly sensitive people who [will react] depending on their mood and how they’re feeling that day or what they did or didn’t eat for lunch. I have no problem going on record with this and probably have gone on record with this before, there aren’t that many people who I respect. There just aren’t. I think journalists have the right to their opinions but I think their opinions should be based on history and what they see, not what they feel, how long they’ve been waiting or whether it’s raining or it’s snowing or whatever."

Grrr. He's kinda right but I think disparaging of journalists and the work that they do. Jacobs has been bitten by journalists before so I can understand why he'd say this. Back in 2007 Jacobs' spring/summer 2008 show started a whopping 2 hours late. Journalist Suzy Menkes wasn't happy and she verbally took a dump on the collection.

The entire event was a parody of fashion now: the inexcusably late start as the 9 p.m. show began at 11 p.m.; the mobs of paparazzi snapping anyone half-known on the big or small screen; invitees treating the show like the ultimate party, although the whistles and roars turned to a whimper by the end. And in Jacobs’s Alice in Wonderland world, the end was at the beginning, as the designer ran out whooping while the parade of models marched in reverse order down the catwalk. (Martin Margiela first did this more than a decade ago).

Bitchy right?

Stefano Pilati on bloggers:

“I pay attention to all of them and I’m very scared … because who are these people? I would like to sit with them and ask them where they come from. Because it’s very easy to judge from your bed. At the same time, I’m fascinated. I’m fascinated by this era and this medium. If people are thirsty about fashion, I like to have a dialogue, but now it’s not a two-way dialogue; it’s a one-way dialogue.”

Stefano, babes, hit me up. Coffee? Dinner? Raunchy Manhunt hook-up? If he wants to sit with me and chat about fashion then I'm wide open...in every sense of the word. Bloggers aren't scary. I mean, I've posted some rather choice words about collections and I've posted images of myself that may cause grown men to scream but it's mostly in jest. I'm not intentionally scary. Not like this bitch...

 

Monastic at YSL

Stefano Pilati’s YSL show was interesting. A few critics found it too strict and lacking allure. I think you really had to look for the allure and the sensuality of the pieces because it was certainly there in the sheer sleeves on a top or the dippy hems of skirts that drew attention to the legs and added interest to what would otherwise be just another pencil skirt.

YSL under Pilati’s direction has for several seasons now focussed on daywear and really, how much sensuality do you want to ooze when attending an important business meeting?

I do agree that after 30-odd looks the collection as a whole was stand-offish and cold but on their own they look chic and powerful. I also loved the 70’s new York working girl silhouette with a skirt that hit below the knee. It was strangely refreshing.

Looking Back: YSL in the Noughties

Continuing my noughties decade recap I now bring you most of the last ten years of YSL ad campaigns. From Tom Fords commercially successful and typically sexy shoots through to Stefano Pilati's demure angle that is more in sync with the YSL spirit.

Above: Kim Peers models Ford's Spring 2001 debut. I always wanted that cigarette holder.

Above & below: Fall 2001, a hugely influential collection inspired by YSL's original 1976 gypsy collection but done mostly in black. The tooled leather belt, shoes, ruffled top and fringed scarf were all widely copied, re-booting boho chic and somehow managing to get Sienna Miller it-girl status. I also recall Mariah Carey sporting the laced ruffled top above.

Below: Spring 2002. I could be wrong but I'm sure this collection spawned the Mombasa bag. Comment if you know.

Above & below: Fall 2003, one of my favourite Ford collections and ad campaigns shot by Craig McDean. It's very Guy Bourdain

Below: Spring 2004, big hair, don't care

Below: Spring 2003, Christy Turlington pictured with the Nadja rose bag

Below: Fall 2004, Ford's final collection for YSL. The ads featured the stunning Gemma Ward. The collection was influenced by YSL's 1977 Chinese collection and jackets were featured with the pagoda shoulder. This was Ford's final collection for the house.

Below: Karen Elson gets all hot n bothered over Stefano Pilati's debut for YSL Spring/Summer 2005. Though the collection didn't get rave reviews it did spawn the trend for tulip shaped dresses, skirts and coats.

Below: The Muse bag, I'm not sure what year this is.

Below: Fall 2005, featuring Daria Werbowy. This collection kicked off the trend for platform shoes which have been a fashion staple ever since and if Alexander McQueen's Spring 2010 show is anything to go by, well the trend still has legs (I'm sorry I had to).

Below: Gisele shot by Inez & Vinoodh.

Below: Naomi Campbell in harem-esque pants

Below: Kate Moss shows the world a little coke habit will get you a long way. Pictured with the Muse 2 bag. After being filmed doing coke Kate was immediately dumped by Chanel & Burberry and quickly picked up by a slew of companies. I'm pretty sure I have a Vogue from this year where she was on like the first 20 pages, it was ridic.

Finally, Christy Turlington pops up again, this time for Fall 09 carrying the Roady bag