Two Fabulous and Vivacious Collections
As a point of contrast to Casee Marie's post earlier this week showcasing some minimalist fashion, I thought that I'd post some pieces from a couple of recent collections that are the opposite of minimalist. First up is the Spring 2011 collection from Alexander McQueen. After McQueen's death last winter, McQueen's longtime assistant Sarah Burton took over the brand. This is her first full collection. The silhouettes, patterns and feathers echo many of McQueen's previous collections, but I think that was necessary for Burton to show her continuity within the brand and establish herself as McQueen's successor.
Of note in this first group of pictures are the belts in the first dress. I LOVE that the belts form a corset of sorts for the dress. Also, the pattern here really calls back to some older McQueen collections. And the third dress has a classic McQueen military vibe to it.
I'm not sure if you can tell in this picture, but the second dress's pattern is designed to mimic the pattern monarch butterflies' wings which are also on the shoes paired with the dress. Speaking of the shoes, aren't they fantastic? Look at those heels! Gorgeous.
I don't know if it's obvious from this picture, but the first dress is made out of wheat stalks and the last one is all feathers. Lovely and intricate and very McQueen.
This second group of pictures comes from Valentin Yudashkin's Spring 2011 collection. I stumbled across this collection while browsing fashion blogs and I LOVE it. I'm a sucker for bright colors and flowing fabrics, so this collection just pulled me in.
The collection starts with a more muted color palette, with just hints of color, but even those muted greens will be picked up later in the collection. I just adore the silhouettes of these looks with the structured tops and the voluminous skirts for the first two looks and the inversion of that for the last one. I would seriously wear that second look if I could.
Here is where we start to get into the vivid colors. I love the hint of color peaking out from beneath the coat in the first look which serves as a nice transition into the colorful looks coming up. The dress on the far right is beautiful, and the colors are wonderful. It's green and red without looking Christmas-y and even though I usually don't love bubble skirts, it really just works here.
Check out that red lining on the middle dress! I feel like it just gives that dress an extra "oomph" that it would have been lacking if the entire dress was in pink. And I love the last dress. I love that the olive green from the beginning of the collection has been picked up and utilized in this absolutely fabulous evening gown. You don't usually think of olive green as a color to make a gown in (or at least I don't associate olive green with evening wear), but it completely works here.
What do you think? Did you love any of these looks in particular? How do these compare in your mind to the looks Casee Marie posted a few days ago?
Of note in this first group of pictures are the belts in the first dress. I LOVE that the belts form a corset of sorts for the dress. Also, the pattern here really calls back to some older McQueen collections. And the third dress has a classic McQueen military vibe to it.
I'm not sure if you can tell in this picture, but the second dress's pattern is designed to mimic the pattern monarch butterflies' wings which are also on the shoes paired with the dress. Speaking of the shoes, aren't they fantastic? Look at those heels! Gorgeous.
I don't know if it's obvious from this picture, but the first dress is made out of wheat stalks and the last one is all feathers. Lovely and intricate and very McQueen.
This second group of pictures comes from Valentin Yudashkin's Spring 2011 collection. I stumbled across this collection while browsing fashion blogs and I LOVE it. I'm a sucker for bright colors and flowing fabrics, so this collection just pulled me in.
The collection starts with a more muted color palette, with just hints of color, but even those muted greens will be picked up later in the collection. I just adore the silhouettes of these looks with the structured tops and the voluminous skirts for the first two looks and the inversion of that for the last one. I would seriously wear that second look if I could.
Here is where we start to get into the vivid colors. I love the hint of color peaking out from beneath the coat in the first look which serves as a nice transition into the colorful looks coming up. The dress on the far right is beautiful, and the colors are wonderful. It's green and red without looking Christmas-y and even though I usually don't love bubble skirts, it really just works here.
Check out that red lining on the middle dress! I feel like it just gives that dress an extra "oomph" that it would have been lacking if the entire dress was in pink. And I love the last dress. I love that the olive green from the beginning of the collection has been picked up and utilized in this absolutely fabulous evening gown. You don't usually think of olive green as a color to make a gown in (or at least I don't associate olive green with evening wear), but it completely works here.
What do you think? Did you love any of these looks in particular? How do these compare in your mind to the looks Casee Marie posted a few days ago?