Ready To Wear

The Jakarta Post -- WEEKENDER   |  Thu, 01/29/2009 7:06 PM  |  Ready To Wear

Minimalist tendency
Stop us if you've heard this one before: Two women walk into a bar. One's dressed like a nun in mourning. The other's dressed like Britney after her comeback. How can each claim to be the best-dressed woman in the room? This season, the less-is-more philosophy takes the cake. Embedded into the DNA’s of Calvin Klein, Jil Sander, Narciso Rodriguez, and Prada with beautiful pared-down and precise visions – recession would be the word of the moment when it comes to choosing colors this season for even the fanciful types felt the urge to clean house. For instance, Stefano Pilati swapped his romantic notions for stark, architectural tailoring at Yves Saint Laurent, while Alber Elbaz spun plain into exquisitely pretty at Lanvin. Fall's new black? Black.

The towering inferno
High-fashion designers are perhaps fed-up with the earthly limitations of contemporary life, and have begun crafting shoes less suited for Barbie than Barbeella. One of the finest leaders in fashion and accessories, Miu Miu has ranged its fall/winter 08 collection on futuristic shoes with block-coloured sculpted heels that look like they’ve come straight out of The Jetsons. Since skinny jeans and pipeline high-waisted skirts have been at the forefront of fashion for a long time, these towering beauties will definitely catch an eyeful and keep you way ahead of your time.

Beautiful curves
Reflected by the Victorian era, when ladies wore peplum jackets with full long skirts, fall/winter 2008 made it very apparent when designers shone a spotlight on the waist. In reviving this dressmaker's conceit, so popular in the forties, jackets, dresses, and skirts all benefited from this soft architecture, which carved natural womanly curves into newly stylish silhouettes at Lanvin, Chanel, Bottega Veneta, Prada, and Yves Saint Laurent. They were paired down with pencil skirts and slim pants and there are even dresses at Balenciaga, that greatly enhanced the curve of the hips. While this look might not be suitable for all, it surely succeeds in creating an illusion for any size zero.

All Dressed Up
It’s a short way from Singapore to Jakarta, but the team behind the three-year-old label Alldressedup, founded by retailer Tina Tan-Leo, made the trek. In fact, they went straight to Grand Indonesia’s Harvey Nichols. With 30 years of experience in the luxury and fashion retail business, Tan- Leo takes her inspiration from 'the bohemian spirited traveller in every women who owns her style' and chic urban women who are not swayed by fleeting seasonal trends. Her signature pleats are seen in most tops and dresses with vivid colours, contrasting textures and flamboyancy but when it comes to this eclectic fashion label don’t ever think you’ve got it figured out, because there’s always something new to expect.

 

+Nikeeta Lakhiani

 

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