2011 snuck out quietly and 2012 arrived with a bang! We would not have had it any other way here at VagaBond. Here’s hoping that the New Year brings all our customers and fans happiness and health!
Apart from the bubbly and the sometimes awkward kiss at midnight, the New Year brings with it glamour and speculation as awards season looms and everyone from Ms. Wintour to your granny are cooing at the prospect of critiquing the couture the A-listers will be donning in a bid to envelope even more of the spotlight.
With this in mind, we are having a little awards ceremony of our own! Only this time, instead of narcissistic stars veritably elbowing one another out of the way for camera time, we are throwing the spotlight on the designers and hailing our favorites of the extravaganza that was Spring Summer 2012. No easy task when one considers the underwater aurora that was Paris, or the sugar rush that was New York with its ice cream colored palette.
With much deliberation, the VagaBond ‘Best Designer’ Oscar has to go to Monsieur Lagerfeld for the visual extravaganza that was the Chanel show. Ariel has never been so in Vogue right now! Florence Welch serenaded the enthralled as the models gracefully sashayed down donning the most incredible designs in exciting and new materials. Bright white predominated the pieces, but with Lagerfeld as director, it was all about the detail. Essentially, this is what secured the Best Designer award for the ponytailed one. The pearl has long been associated with Chanel, offsetting the tweed and jersey the brand is synonymous with. Only this time the pearls do not soporifically sit on the neck, they have been affixed to the skin of the models, adding a certain je ne sais quoi to the peek-a-boo details of some of the pieces. As for the pieces themselves, they included the de rigeur skirt suits with a boxy shaped jacket, utterly outré jackets that look as though glowing plankton affixed itself in a pattern and the highly coveted seashell clutch purse. The pieces, the attention to detail and the collaboration of newly developed materials secure Mr. Lagerfeld’s position at the helm of fashion and a VagaBond hero.
Next up is our ‘Best Supporting Accessory’ category. Chanel could very well have stolen this one but the desirability factor alone for the accessories at Givenchy ensures the award for the French fashion house. In keeping with the underwater theme, it seems as though Prince Eric fought tooth and nail to bring his lovely mermaid heels embellished with shark fin clasps and shark tooth shaped purses that hung from a necklace. Tisci embraced the most mysterious and menacing of sea creatures and the result could not be more enthralling.
‘Best Foreign Designer’ is a non-entity really considering everyone in the industry is foreign but for now we will run with it! Christopher Kane takes this one, hands down. He is a thoroughly modern innovator and one look at his collection will prove so. He created a ‘ghost fabric’ by layering materials including aluminium. The result is a fabric that bends and crackles with the light and movement of the wearer. A loose fitting dress with appliquéd flowers is a standout piece of the collection. Kane took photos of flowers and with some genius computer trickery, managed to transfer the image onto the piece. Kane’s mastery of technology combined with an innate desire to push boundaries ensures that with each collection, all eyes are on the Scot.
‘Best Costume Design’ is an award that always takes my interest. It is a category that surely deserves much attention as the dress of a character has as much effect upon an audience as the lines they deliver. With this in mind, Sarah Burton for Alexander Mc Queen deserves much commendation. Ruffles, oil-slick leather, face shielding lace sheaths, everything screamed drama and Burton, as always, pulled it off to perfection. A translucent palette counterbalanced looks that were often sugar sweet and others that held a sinister element.
Simone Rocha wins our award for 'Best Newcomer.' With three collections under her belt, Rocha is certainly one to watch. Her spring show was edgy, with each piece possessing a certain finesse. Her clogs are still very much on our wish list!
Of course, all designers are to be commended for adding to the Fashion Weeks. Without them VagaBond would have nothing to obsess over! But Lagerfeld, Tici, Kane and Burton kept this blogger enthralled all the way through their showings. Here’s to 2012 and the excitement it proposes! Now, who’s ready for Fall ‘12?
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