Resort.09 Review: Jenni Kayne

Jenni Kayne's Rst.09 collection was right up our alley. We loved it. The clean minimal shapes and selective use of bright "pop" colors gave this collection a girlie edge in combination with the more masculine pieces. The collection was composed of easy to wear pieces that could be mixed-and-matched to create an endless amount of looks, which was quite smart from a merchandising perspective. Her collection was not overly trendy, so a majority of the pieces could be worn for quite a few seasons to come. The double layered dresses and tops, as well as the easy to wear jackets, were a hit, and as you already know we are big fans of Kayne's jackets, since we featured her in our Best Jackets of the season for FW.2008. It was a smart, well designed collection from Kayne, with styling that showed off the clothes, as well as being properly edited so there was no redundancy from look to look and we anticipate many more strong seasons to come.

To view Jenni kayne's complete collection visit style.com

Resort.09 Review: Alexander Wang

Alexander Wang's Rst.09 collection wasn't heavy on concept, but was incredibly strong it its wearability. Each look appealed to what we would imagine his idea Wang girl would want, other then his muse Ms. Erin Wasson. His color palette was minimal using mainly black, white and a variety grey tones, which kept the collection light, as well as using ultra-lightweight fabrics with a great deal of breathing room. It was airy, light and wearable, just what you would want to wear in NY during those incredibly hot summer months. Bravo Alex!

To view the complete collection visit style.com

Cecilia Carlstedt

We had made a previous post about one of our favorite illustrators, Cecilia Carlstedt, and we wanted to post a few more image we recently saw on her site.

Check out more of her work at www.ceciliacarlstedt.com.

Resort.09 Review: Phi

We adored Phi's Rst.09 collection, which played with a contrast between masculinity and femininity. It was filled with crisp tailored pieces, and incorporated print as well as transparency. Melbostad used vibrant leopard print and lace to contrast to the grey plaid he used in the tailored pieces. We liked the combinations of short skirted looks with the loose fitting trouser, and almost all the looks were paired with sheer tops. The silhouette was flattering and fresh and the styling was spot on. The references to lingerie and undergarments kept the collection sexy, but not overly overt. This may just be out favorite collection of the season.

Resort.09 Review: Stella McCartney

Easy, tailored and casual pretty much sums up Stella McCartney's Rst.09 Collection. She showed lots of jackets over jersey dressed and pantsuits. Everything had an easy silhouette which draped and hugged the body enough to still be flattering. The boyish inspired looks, with tailored jackets and pants with a dropped crotch, were more appealing then the girlish mini dresses for the simple fact it almost looks like you are wearing your little brothers clothes. The key to making these clothes work is that there is enough shaping within the seams of the garments to still flatter the figure.

To view complete collection visit style.com

Resort.09 Review: Zac Posen

This collection took you all over the place, with all sorts of references and silhouettes. The collection starts out light and floral with a really great white jacket over an airy chiffon dress (shown above). The florals are later interrupted with a strong full length black gown that only seems to relate to the previous looks by the way the seams are used and curve around the body referencing those of a corset. Then following, there are all white shirting looks, then acid yellow and black print, and even a dress that looks like it could be taken from Temperly.

The collection didn't even seem to have a consistent customer, but throughout there were some great looks, mainly the monochrome looks where subtleties were narrated by tonal details and surface designs. This is one collection that was designed with the intention of the Posen girl, if there is one, doing just about everything from attending a garden party, afternoon tea, sailing along the coast and then partying at night, with the variety of floaty sheer florals to the the edgy black sequined mini dresses. Overall it was not one of our favorites, if you couldn't already tell.

To view full collection visit style.com

Resort.09 Review: Proenza Schouler

We think Proenza is one of the strongest collections of Rst.09. The clothes were loose, hung away from the body and were made in luxurious fabrics with great textures. The strongest aspect of the collection was the proportion of of color and shape. They showed teeny, tiny bra tops, done in a very respectable manner, with giant jackets and tees combined with draped airy bottoms. The use of controlled volume was sexy, yet not overdone, which is what we have come to expect from Proenza.

To view complete collection visit style.com

Resort.09 Review: Marc Jacobs

Marc Jacobs was retro, cool, hip and relaxed. There was a clear trend toward using the wrap to create a minimal cocoon-like silhouette. This was evident from the beginning with the use of satin to leather and even tweeds. It was a collection that was filled with cohesive looks that could take you anywhere from the pool side during the day, to parting at night. We loved the use of the strong shoulder and the clearly defined silhouette of the collection. It was girlie with hints of a masculine silhouette, which came at a good time to remind us of how influential YSL was by putting woman in a suit previously reserved for men.

The show was typical Marc Jacobs with the inclusion of incredibly wearable pieces while still showing more overly kitsch looks and maintaining the classic Marc Jacobs allure. He went from clean separates at the beginning, to bows and embroidered hearts engulfing the garment. It was a strong collection from Jacobs and a nice departure from FW.08 with a strong silhouette, which has been a trend over the past few seasons, but now he showed a crisper shoulder and allowing the fabric to drape creating that great cocoon shape.

Resort.09 Review: Donna Karan

The first two looks of the collection were strong with the typical Donna Karan draping going on around the necklines. Black was the main contrast color for these looks, which worked well used alongside the fleshy pink. It took the pink from girlie and cutesy (which normally would not work in this situation) and made it modern to suit the Donna Karan customer. Later, at the end of the collection, the pink developed into a saturated coral used in great Grecian type gowns.

The overall proportions and silhouettes were nicely thought out. For instance, the asymmetrical designs (full views shown below) were quite intricate and engaging, though you wouldn't necessarily think so on the first glance,, but the shape and proportions are created by draping and folds. Though the overall collection was quite strong, there were a few low points, in particular the "chanel-esque" use of tweed and overly feathered pink coat. The use of bows and excessive beading just didn't seem like the Donna Karan woman from years past. Beyond these few, less stellar parts of the collection, overall it was a nice departure from past Donna Karan and a fresh, dressed-up take on resort.

Full Donna Karan collection is not shown above, to view full collection visit www.style.com

Resort.09 Review: Carolina Herrera

So, the 2008 resort season actually began quite a few weeks ago, and no worries we will catch up on the past shows soon enough, but for now we decided we might as well start with Carolina Herrera's crisp, clean and succinct collection.

The collection was filled with some great one-piece looks that were a combination of sheer, draped chiffon as well as more tailored, structured seams throughout. There was an exemplary white suit that was everything you would want from a resort suit. It was easy, yet still had enough structure to give a very feminine silhouette, and was made of a breathable lightweight material. It was dead on. The entire collection had contrasting looks, one of which was a strapless dress that had a crisp looking neckline with intricate cutout negative details and unexpected draping along the waistline. The last look of the resort show was a bit heavy and overwhelming for the resort season, but when the look is deconstructed, each garment in itself is quite strong. In particular the easy fitting, slim sleeved and crisp shouldered jacket. And, of course, there was her use of shirting from simple shirt-dresses to the striped full-length dress that reminded us of classic Herrera.

Yves Saint Laurent

Below, we have posted a few images in remembrance of Yves Saint Laurent who died this past Sunday, in Paris, at the age of 71.

1957 with a drawing of a cocktail dress similar to Dior's new look, which made Christian Dior take notice and appoint him to be his assistant

1957 at the beginning of his career which lasted until 2002

1958 Yves Saint Laurent becomes head designer of Dior after Christian Dior's Death in 1957

1975 Helmut Newton's Photo of YSL's iconic Le Smoking