SS09, The Summary

My favorites:

Ann Demeulemeester
Balenciaga
Chanel
Dries Van Noten
Hussein Chalayan
Louis Vuitton
Marc Jacobs
Undercover
Versace
Yves Saint Laurent
It's quite a challenging season. I think that most of the designers are aware of the financial situation around the globe; but few have offered clear visions. Maybe the buying managers have seen more commercial oriented choices in the show room, but a collection like Givenchy's seemed to be out of touch.
I think that the New York designers will be particularly challenged due to their reliance on private equity money and debt financing. Small businesses will be challenged and fashion is no exception. We'll see more consolidations.
It's a triumph for Louis Vuitton and Marc Jacobs. I really like what Marc Jacobs did this season. Contrary to many who think that the LV collection is too similar to the Marc Jacobs collection, I think that this latest LV collection is actually Marc Jacob's best for the house. Some have said that the LV collection is more YSL than YSL, and I don't disagree. Stefano Pilati looks too much of a minimalist in comparison. On the other hand, I like his vision and his precise presentation. There is no confusion or ambiguity.
Nicholas Ghesquiere has special eyes for the next new things. His designs are generally very current (except for the SS06 collection) and he's shown us some new fabrics along with some silhouettes and geometric shapes true to his roots. The venue completed the entire package.
Ann Demeulemeester and Undercover both did lots of gorgeous white designs. White is not a non-color. It's extremely colorful without distraction when it's done right. The two showed us exactly what that means.
Chanel showed only three colors: black, white and pink. The venue reminds me of the Coco Chanel movie I watched on TV while switching the channel to CNBC to get updates on the Lehman Brother bankruptcy news during the too many commercial breaks. I could have been watching CNBC all along, but Chanel is just too much mystery to me that I had to watch to know her more. The SS09 collection is Karl's better ones.
Moving on to the more colorful collections, Chalayan once again balanced extremely well between a creative mind and a businessman. Dries Van Noten, without trying too hard, showed a uber Parisian collection with delicious degrading colors and bold jewelry.
As to Versace, she showed what an Italian collection is supposed to be. She gave us glamour and energy when we were mourning. Bravo and a big thank-you.