It comes as no surprise after graduating with an MA from Royal Academy of Arts and working as the accessories designer at Lanvin that Holly Fulton is the winner of Young Designer of the Year Awards at the Scottish Fashion Awards, and this is her second season showing with Fashion East following her debut in February 2009. Deeply inspired by art deco and 1960’s pop art her graphic aesthetic morphs into somewhat of a Futurist Robotica, a femme equipped with all the armor she will need to take her mission from day to night. Her philosophy borrows concepts and technique from couture fashion and translates it to ready to wear.

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Wow! Paris Fashion Week SS 2010 was jammed packed with goodness, as to be expected from Paris. So many collections, so much detail, and so much range. Paris fashion week managed to combine the strengths of New York, London, and Milan all in one week this round. My favorite collections to narrow it down were Balenciaga, Balmain, Chloe & Celine (i’ll elaborate on the junction with the ~ and percent ~ in a moment), Gareth Pugh, Kenzo, Lanvin,  McQueen, and Tim Hamilton.  But all the designers and looks featured here were the best of Paris fashion week so open your eyes and enjoy the edit that took days and days to produce. Continue reading below…

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As Karl Lagerfeld spent part of his childhood on a farm, it seems only fitting that the Chanel built a version of a Marie Antoinette’s barnyard in the Grand Palais to present his Spring Summer 2010 collection.

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Milan Fashion Week, well it was Milan Fashion Week – classic and chic at its best and the rest does not really matter. Jil Sander’s suits with the contrasting fabric on the upper body was probably my favorite feature of the runways. Marni did not feel super Marni to me, maybe it was just the styling that was super boho and a younger demographic than we are used to seeing from her, but I was feeling the vibe nonetheless.  I also really liked Prada’s interpretati0n of the Hawaiian print, they nailed making the most demode thing absolutely chic. Have a look of the highlights I drew from the runways and for more on fashion week check out the New York and London reviews. Stay tuned for Paris…

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You have Street Photography, Runway photography and Backstage Photography, and when it comes to runway backstage,  Sonny Vandevelde is pretty active during Fashion week…

Having access to major runways, he shots and shots pretty much everything to give you the best idea of what happens behind the curtains of fashion shows…. At specifics moments, like before or right after the models do their ‘Fame Walk’ – We like a lot of the work of Sonny and will probably showcase him at every Fashion weeks… www.sonnyphotos.typepad.com

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There was something so refreshing about London Fashion Week this round. I felt this feeling of tireless radiance throughout most of the shows. There was color, shape, textile development, and risk that altogether excited me much more than New York. Of course in the midst of this overwhelming dynamic there were bits of undismissable disappointment, like Christopher Kane’s presentation, one of the shows I anticipate most each season. It breaks my heart even verbalizing the thought, but that is the nature of this business, it’s hard to reinvent yourself each season with something more than perfection. On the bright side of the catwalk was Mark Fast’s blossoming knitwear, Mathew Willaimsons intergalactic shields of armour, Peter Pilotti’s impressionistic prints, Paul Smith’s Tribal remix, Burberry Prorsum’s royal chic, Julien McDonald’s and Josh Goot’s balanced graphics, and House of Holland’s pop culture femme fatale. A very inspiring week of fashion! To see the New York Fashion Week Review click here.

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Bringing you the golden whisper of the New York Fashion week runways.  Though I can not say I saw anything on the revolutionary tip, I was rather impressed with a handful of collection in their entirety.

I was blown away by the Julian Louie runway, the girls looked like gentle fashion illustrations dressed in perfectly tailored garments made with contrast paneling in a muted and soothing palette. Everything about the presentation was gorgeous. I was immersed in the drama behind the Temperley London girls. The collection and runway presentation carried an undeniable art nouveau chic. Equally bold was the collection of Proenza Schouler which was full of color and tribal inspired frocks. And as a final highlight, I was extremely fond of Ohne Titel’s silhouettes and graphic delivery. There are many other details to pay attention to when scrolling through this review, so look closely at the details.

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:::Power Shoulders on the Runway:::

You may shudder at the thought, but you can’t deny it – big shoulders came back with a vengeance – it has been all about power dressing for the past few season, so Joan Collins, eat your heart out!

From New York to Milan, the catwalks unambiguously and unanimously presented the very best 21st Century spin on the 1980’s big exaggerated power shoulder. Tina Kalivas’s Fortune 2009 lookbook is filled with gorgeous tie-dyes and lacquer leathers, but you cannot miss those amplified shoulders popping up from the jackets and dresses. Mixed in among all the electric colours and the shiny bits of Marc Jacobs Spring 09 collection were peaked-shouldered black jackets and vests worn with wide-leg trousers cropped below the knee. Australian designer Illionaire were not even pretending to hide the strong 1980’s influences on their Fall/Winter 09 lookbook. The shoot and the power shoulders both reference the Mommie Dearest era. Even new Danish Design School graduate Anne-Sofie Madsen couldn’t resist adding some stunning height to her new looks.

And for those of us who can’t spot a shoulder pad without thinking of Dynasty, consider what Di Milo has to say: “[Big shoulders are] the closest we get to wings.”

We have compiled a gallery of runway, editorial and flashback inspirations of the Power Shoulders to archive some of the best examples of this ever-growing Trend. As with everything in fashion there are always the pioneers who introduce a trend 2 years before it spreads like a viral plague, in this case Margiela brought it back with a bang in F/W 2007 long before other designers began their interpretations.

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Agatha Ruiz de la Prada, is a Spanish fashion designer best known for her use of bright colors. Her most recent showing at Milan Fashion week seems to be very Dali inspired with her use of upside down umbrellas and bird cage dresses.

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I really liked what I saw in the Neil Barret SS 2010 runway collection. The elongated silhouettes and color and fabric contrasts were a great step in a new direction for him. Double breasted finely tailored jackets and two-column plackets on the shirts give his man a sleek and very fashion forward look, without making him an eye soar. Keeping in the black, white, and gray palette made all the detailing pop.

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:::::Men of Milan:::::

Yesterday we brought you a recap of Men of Paris, and as promised here is the recap of Men of Milan. Are you a Man of Paris or a Man of Milan? What was your favorite collection?

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:::::Men of Paris:::::

Mens Fashion Week is always an exciting time and depending on where I am in my work and life I see the shows as they occur or over a longer period of time. But despite all time barriers I do see all the fashion week shows and take my time in doing so to create my own archive of inspiration. Some designers get 3 looks in my book, some get 6, and others get full independent reviews, while some just dont make my pupils dilate, and so they are left unmnetioned in some rounds. It is hard sometimes because there are designers I love very much and always look to first, but even they have their off seasons. There are 2 major Mens Fashion Weeks and so we bring you in 2 parts, Men of Paris and Men of Milan. Today archives the most symbolic looks from Paris Mens SS 2010 Runways. Stay tuned for Men of Milan tomorrow.

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Having only been showing at New York Fashion Week for three years now, little country New Zealand’s big success Karen Walker continues to keep her Northern Hemisphereans on their toes. Past Fall collection themes have included thirties comic book superheroines and Victorian Edwardian meets grunge street. This year Walker presents to us a collection in tune with the current fall of the economy: She’s Cracked. The show was very cleverly ordered starting off with more classic neutral looks with splashes of colored accessories here and there hinting at the trouble to come.

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It has taken me awhile to get through all the menswear SS 2010 collections. I like to take my time and soak it all in for the seasons recap, which is coming up very soon. And its collections like this one from Miharayasuhiro that make the process a long one for me. Once I see a collection with such a tight and concise story I get stuck. It makes it really hard for me to move onto other collections, so I frankly I just dont for a few days. The collection remains open on my computer while I soak it all in. It is better this way because if I were to jump to the next collection immediately after seeing Miharayasuhiro’s SS 2010, chances are they would get far less love from me than they deserve.

In many ways the Miharayasuhiro’s SS 2010 Collection is a kind of menswear perfection for me. It portrays a kind of masculine urban nomad which is such a relevant contemporary persona. The layering seen throughout the entire collection is brilliantly balanced with color and texture ~ an absolute A+ on the styling!

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Inspired by Japanese aesthetics and cultural traditions juxtaposed with Italian tailoring giuliano Fujiwara brings to fashion a refreshing, avant garde look at menswear over and over again. It is always super interesting to see what Masataka Matsumura will do to reinvent each season. Working as creative director for Fujiwara for 3 years now, the label has had a serious revamp, making his show a must see in menswear fashion. As we have seen throughout his time as creative director he is highly detail oriented and very technical with his design. The SS 2010 giuliano Fujiwara collection takes a simple silhoutte and partners it with a techy-fashion-forward- harness, completely changing the balance of the look while playing with contemporary and futuristic fashion. Its if refreshing and absolutely wearable!

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