Friday, 26 February 2010

BLUMARINE goes CAVALLI

As a child, my brother and I, used to play games, like children do when they're stuck in a car for too long,  bored to death at the backseat of my father's Volvo, on our way to the south of France. One of those games was to  recognize a car's brand from a distant far enough, that you could not read the brand or recognize the brand's  logo. This  being a life time ago, was still do-able, while car brands all had a distinguished and recognizable  design. A BMW didn't look like a Saab or Mercedes. A Volvo was square and tougher looking than a Renault. Then in  the "90's, there was this shift, were car brands started to copy each other's designs. As a result car brands  became unrecognizable, and high ways all over the world, were filled with look-a-likes. Fortunately, I wasn't a  child anymore, so I didn't have to miss out on the car game... 



When a fashion brand turns 360° in order to sell, I always feel betrayed. I like to know where to go (and not to  go), to get my fashion fix. Heels: Louboutin and Manolo Blahnik, and recently I added Aperlaï to that list.  Ballerina's: Lanvin and Repetto. Trench coats: Burberry. Dresses: Lanvin, Dries van Noten, etc. etc. Now,  remember  Blumarine? Those floaty, flowery, pastel-ish, pretty dresses. Sugar sweet advertising campaigns shot by  Tim Walker? Well, that's all over. The fall collection shown in Milan, looks like a Roberto Cavalli collection, a  bad rip off of Balmain... Apparently it sells. Which makes it even harder to accept. What about brand integrity?  The most beautiful fashion brands today, are still those brands, who don't give in, who stay loyal to their  image,  their style, their client. Dries van Noten is one of those unique brands (Mr van Noten once said in an  interview, that there were moments were he tried to please editors and stylists, but that it wasn't worth it). Or  Jill Sander. The Prada group found the perfect successor in Raf Simons after Jill Sander's departure. It's still  after three decades, the brand every minimalist goes to, to score the perfect outfit (Tonight's show, was yet  again, marvelous!). Or is it me, and do clients really want this? What do you think? Do you shop your items at  specific brands, like I do, or do you buy wherever you find what pleases you?

Here some pictures of the Blumarine show:

BLUMARINE F/W 2010


 TTFN 

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