Some Faves From Spring 2012 Couture Collections

Valentino Spring 2012 Haute Couture

For  Pier Paolo Piccioli and Maria Grazia Chiuri, the "cultural spine" for this collection was the 18th century French Age of Enlightenment.  Piccioli said something I think is really worth thinking about-"If you don't think about fashion, you just do clothes. Fashion needs culture or it becomes empty."  A lot of people who don't understand fashion,specifically runway shows,need to look at it more like a story.  Everything has a story and a foundation of inspiration for which each piece comes together as a collective reflection of that story/inspiration.  This is the culture of the collection.  

There are several things I love about this collection- one of them being the delicate femininity of the long sheer silhouettes.  The shapes and patterns are clearly reflective of the 18th century French Enlightenment. It looks very princess-like to me, classic and beautiful, yet a bit whimsical.  Most importantly, I think the sheer fabrics are brilliantly used, and from what it looks like, very finely stitched.  The fabric disappears against the model's fair skin, appearing effortlessly beautiful. 

Zuhair Murad 

I haven't really seen much by Murad, but I came across a few pictures of his collection while I was doing my nightly peruse through the blogosphere.  Needless to say, I was impressed.  Sure, there's nothing unconventional or avant garde about it, but it is completely sexy! The lines and sillhouettes are strong and precise! They form to the body like a second skin.  I could see a lot of these looks on the red carpet for sure!

Elie Saab Spring 2012 Couture Collection

This collection is absolutely breathtaking! Much like the sheerness in Valentino's collection, the sheer fabrics disappear against the skin.  The flowers and intricate stitching is so elaborate, yet simple and uncomplicated-two things this collection was actually criticized for. Personally, the fair colors compliment the skin so well the way they delicately settle over the female form, leaving only the embellished flower stitchings to stand out.  When it comes to gowns, I think it's better to appear effortless with subtle detail versus anything over the top.