WHEN the fall runway season ended, a week ago Sunday, there seemed more to consider than to sweep aside. Rare was the first-tier show that clanged like an empty pot — and you wouldn't have said that six months ago, when designers conjured up a cross between a Star Trek groupie and an Elvis impersonator. (See Steven Meisel's spread in February Italian Vogue for details.)
The silhouette for fall, as fielded by Jil Sander, More Photos »
Multimedia
Fashion Shows
Paris Fashion Week
Reviews and commentary, as well as photographs, audio and video from NY, London, Milan and Paris Fashion Weeks.
Go to Complete Coverage »Blog
On the Runway
Cathy Horyn goes backstage at shows and design houses, and inside the minds of designers.
It's hard to say what brought designers back to earth, but there's a good chance it was the bottom line. Clothes cost lots of money, a single garment the equivalent of a mortgage payment. There is only so much rationalizing available to a black wool jacket, however good the fit and self-esteeming the label, before a little voice cries "Zara!" and you're out the door.
Jennifer Wheeler, the vice president for designer apparel at Nordstrom, suggests that women have learned to think of clothes in much the same way they do jewelry or fine art. "They have to have an emotional reaction," she said. That sounds reasonable, or reasonable enough, but after hundreds of collections sprawled over four cities, how do you determine the real thing?
If a woman walking past Bergdorf Goodman's windows last week felt cold-shouldered by the minidresses on display, she will certainly not want for ways in September to cover her behind. This is the biggest change. Fall clothes are longer and roomier if not always ageconsiderate.
Marc Jacobs's tall-drink-ofwater silhouette may recall Paris Vogue of the 1970s, when nearly every foot forward was a Maud Frizon, but the easy polish and hopeful palette of bright accents against gray and navy blue ought to strike a chord with women who always carry in their minds the figure they want to become. It's a romantic sensibility, to be sure, but Mr. Jacobs keeps it as cold and sparsely furnished as the classical villa that served as the backdrop for his show. If the collections of Jil Sander, Lanvin, Calvin Klein and Narciso Rodriguez seem just as self-assured and individualistic, it may be because these designers have developed a strong point of view that Julie Gilhart, the fashion director of Barneys New York, said, "We buy designers, not trends."
In addition to making some exceptional dresses — plain, sensual, with a single pressed-down pleat as the only detail — Raf Simons, the designer at Jil Sander, offered capes that just graze the body and incorporate the details of a jacket. Other collections had capes and trapeze coats, but the difference is that Mr. Simons uses his to convey the message of a leaner, smartly polished look.
"The strength comes from being exact," Ms. Gilhart said. "If you're going to buy a cape, you're going to buy it from Jil Sander." At Givenchy, Riccardo Tisci's neat jackets and wool sailor pants play the same mental game. Tailored trousers aren't a lingering thought of the collections, in part, Ms. Wheeler says, because "leggings and skinny pants are still out there." (And, to reinforce that impression, Nicolas Ghesquiere of Balenciaga has added a new, slouchy variation on the khaki jodhpur.)
The dress on the left is fantastic in a catwalk sense, but that orangey jacket on the right? Seriously?
There were more styles in this collection than the last one.
And more dresses.
Queen of the night, Helen Mirren looked amazing in Christian Lacroix. If it's a body shot (as opposed to closeup shot,) it's hard to remember she's alreayd 61 years old!
Cate Blanchett looked elegant in Armani Prive, and right on the whole metallic, futuristic trend. Makeup, jewelery, everything was simple impecable.
Rachel Weisz wore a seemingly simple Vera Wang gown. I love that long cluster of diamonds (and the diamond ribbon) at the top of her dress. The dress is so perfectly tailored- it's like the dress is softly wrapped around her, and the diamonds solidified the whole vision.
After the brilliant yellow dress she wore to the Golden Globes, Reese Witherspoon's Nina Ricci by Olivier Theysken dress here just didn't seem as striking. I'm sure this gown floated around Reese beautifully, but it just isn't the most photogenic dress.
Like Blanchett, Nicole Kidman can do (almost) no wrong on the red carpet. She looked elegant, as usual, in a Balenciega dress.
Nicole Kidman's BBF, Naomi Watts looked really pretty last night, although for some reason, she landed on a worst dress list.
