February 1, 2006

dirty pretty things.

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one of my favorite things about fashion week is seeing new talent. lesley and rachel over at fashiontribes have debated that ny fashion week is too commercial to foster real creativity, which i definitely agree with. there are a few new designers whose shows i am looking forward to, namely ashleigh verrier and 3.1 by philip lim, former designer of development.

besides the clothes on the runway, another hot place to see new talent are those wearing the clothes. a good showing at fashion week can make a model into a star, and modeling agencies send out show packages to promote the girls they believe can be the next gisele, linda, or daria.

after the brazilian invasion, then the eastern europeans, then the canadians, the u.s have a few girls that hit it big in s/s 2006. hilary rhoda, a former field hockey player from maryland, has gotten editorials in v and harpers bazaar, and is currently starring in the balenciaga ad campaign. what’s interesting is that her agency took her to designers in ny and milan, and her look was promptly rejected. then her agent, ivan bart of img, took her to paris where she met with balenciaga designer nicolas ghesquiere, and she was signed on the spot. after that, vuitton, balenciaga, lanvin, yves saint laurent, chanel, chloe and valentino followed, and a blue-chip was born. you can be sure for the fall/winter shows, many designers in ny, london and milan are booking rhoda. floridian heather bratton is another american girl who is certain to have a big fall. she wasn’t picked up for any ny shows during s/s, but did major designers in milan and paris, has been in v, pop, and british vogue, and is currently appearing on the cover of vogue italia, shot by steven meisel.

the girls getting major play right now are pale of skin, angelic hair and the largest of eyes. sasha has scored the s/s 06 prada campaign after wowing the designer at the f/w shows. snejana is another prada fave who is starring in the ysl campaign with another hot newcomes, tanya. brazilian caroline trentini can be seen on every major runway,and gemma ward, from australia who many credit with starting the “alien” movement, appears in us vogue almost monthly, was guest editor of australian vogue last month, and has nabbed the balenciaga and hermes campaigns.

who will the breakout girls of f/w 06 be? will this be a year a minority jumps on the scene, like liya kebede did in 2001 or hye park did last season? let the castings begin!

marc got it right at the f/w presentation for vuitton on saturday. the arts and crafts inspired collection featured curvy jackets, balloon-y sleeves on blouses, and of course, fabulous bags. the wait list is probably growing already.

other designers who nailed it were alber elbaz at lanvin and phoebe philo at chloe. after an interesting s/s turn, stefano pilati was off his game at ysl (too bad).