Chanel Mixes-it-up for Spring 2010
posted by: brianka in Chanel Shoes, High heels, Mules, Platforms, Pumps, Sandals, spring 2010 shoes on December 22nd, 2009
At first glance, Chanel’s Spring 2010 shoes seem to have a bit of a split personality. The preponderance of chunky clogs and wooden platforms plays as quite a contrast against feminine, textured, cone heels and layered floral-vamp sandals.
But, this strange variance in footwear make sense when taken with Lagerfeld’s 2010 show as a whole.
As noted in the runway review at Style.com:
Lagerfeld was on a roll. Digging into a theme can sometimes throw up some embarrassing puns, and the effort to be youthful has occasionally had off-beam results at Chanel. But with this collection, Lagerfeld’s summing up of the season’s tendencies—beige, ivory, and black; rough textures; transparency and lace—was spun into a collection so masterfully balanced between classicism and current fashion affairs that the whole thing felt delightfully sure-footed.The knack was that he didn’t rush it—just let the thing keep bouncing out in a sustained variation of caramels, taupes, and ecrus, all logically adapted to the house’s nubby tweed suits, frothy blouses, and fluttery chiffons. The editing of everything to short lengths looked sweet without being chichi—the test being that every teenage girl looked naturally at home in the little thigh-split skirts (that’s what has happened to the bottom half of the Chanel suit), as well as in the mini-crinis and ruffled dance dresses.
What is interesting to me is the one descriptive phrase that dominated my thoughts in looking at this runway collection is conspicuously absent from the above review.
That phrase? Gothic Lolita.
(Image c/o wikipedia.com)
Someone’s been paying attention to the underground fashion scene, boys and girls.
Chanel’s chunky clogs and elegant sandals would normally have felt as if they belonged on two separate runways. But, Lolita fashion successfully matches both ultra-feminine as well as goth-chunky choices in footwear, so it is not a surprise to see it working here.
What I found remarkable was how successful the collection was in merging the extreme frothiness of Lolita with signature Chanel textured bouclés. It really does add an unexpected youthfulness to otherwise conservative materials.
But, you can see this for yourself with some selections from the Spring 2010 Chanel Runway (all photos sourced from style.com unless otherwise credited):
Frilly Lolita styles matches with feminine heels:
School-girl Lolita, matched with chunky clogs:
There were also a handful of straight-forward gothic styles; perhaps due to current Twilight Madness and the recent popularity of vampire fiction?
Most successful, for me, were the styles that managed youthfulness while still capturing a the core feel of the Chanel identity. Less overtly Lolita and more of a ‘Hip Chanel’; these, to me, really captured the sophistication I tend to associate with the Chanel brand while staying accessible and relevant to chic, young, professional women.
Other shoes of note:
Ultimately, if you are looking at the shoes alone, you are probably going to find yourself in a love or hate relationship to the clogs, no matter how dolled up they are. But the decorated pumps – heaven.
So, if these ultra-feminine, gothic-Lolita influences trickle down into mainstream fashion, that’s a trend I can really get behind.
I recently read (can’t recall where) that it used to be a counter-cultural statement to dress casually. Now it’s the norm. If it is now a counter-cultural act to dress up and try to make the world a little bit more beautiful through fashion, then bring it on.
What’s your take?
16 Comments
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April 02, 2010 at 11:00 pm, Spring 2010 Shoe Trend Alert: The return of the clogs « shoez 4 u… said:
[...] I’m almost onboard, but these clogs, as seen on the Chanel Spring 2010 runway are a bit, make that a lot, out of my price [...]
March 31, 2010 at 9:05 pm, Spring 2010 Shoe Trend Alert: The return of the clogs | Prada Gucci Dolce Gabbana said:
[...] I’m almost onboard, but these clogs, as seen on the Chanel Spring 2010 runway are a bit, make that a lot, out of my price [...]
March 31, 2010 at 12:37 am, Spring 2010 Shoe Trend Alert: The return of the clogs | ShoeBlog said:
[...] I’m almost onboard, but these clogs, as seen on the Chanel Spring 2010 runway are a bit, make that a lot, out of my price [...]
March 08, 2010 at 2:22 pm, shoez 4 u… said:
[...] Chanel Mixes-it-up for Spring 2010 [...]
March 08, 2010 at 2:17 pm, shoez 4 u… said:
[...] 8, 2010 irisshmu Leave a comment Go to comments Comments » Dec 14 [...]
January 19, 2010 at 11:29 am, galligator said:
I think it’s about making $$$ and looking to make or drive the next big thing. Fashion cycles have contracted into shorter mini-trends with 6 months between shows and availability causing many consumers to be tired of some trends before they are even truly available. It is harder and harder to keep things feeling fresh and new, even in an environment that is constantly borrowing from itself and past influences. And influences from fringe & fetish are regularly mined by haute couture, so it’s not surprising to me that borrowing happens, even from a so-called snob. Could it be a coincidence? Possibly, but Lolita fashion has been gaining more attention outside of Japan over the last several years, so Lolita now covers more variants than just the classic ‘Japanese Lolita’ subculture. It’s about looking for the next big trend while still making a profit. And, just because he was dismissive of the culture while in Japan doesn’t mean he wasn’t influenced or inpired by what he saw. What is seen is difficult to un-see. The fact that he could find a way to try to ‘make it his’ without acknowledging Lolita as an at least tangental influence seems entirely possible. Why credit others when you can be the one of the visionaries who brings back youth and innocence to the often-sultry runway?
Interestingly, a short while after I posted this, style.com also noted the lolita trends on several of the spring runways, including Chanel.
Intentional or not, this show will likely increase availability of Lolita-esque fashions in mainstream malls as the normal fashion trend trickle-down & copycating cycle occurs.
Some people will see it as Lolita, others may just call it cute or young.
January 18, 2010 at 7:28 pm, alice said:
oh please. like one of the snobbiest guys in the fashion industry has any idea or interest in a small japanese subculture fashion.
in fact, Karl was invited to a fashion show in Paris where japanese lolita-style fashions were being shown, and he pretty much told them to fuck off.
i think you're reading a lot more into the collection than there actually is. looks like the tired and boring mix of goth/bohemian/girly/victorian. like that hasn't been done a thousand times before.
short puffy skirts does not japanese lolita style make.
January 07, 2010 at 4:51 am, galligator said:
Woo Hoo. Style.com just got the memo on this one!
http://www.style.com/stylefile/2010/01/are-you-a-…
January 07, 2010 at 3:23 am, galligator said:
Is it unusual that someone in their late 30's notices these things?
January 07, 2010 at 3:22 am, galligator said:
If you are not familiar with GL but want to see why I made that connection, try finding a copy of the 'Gothic and Lolita Bible' at any larger bookseller. The magazine 'Gothic Beauty' also occasionally has GL styles.
January 07, 2010 at 3:20 am, galligator said:
With Chanel presenting this look for spring, we have a decent chance of this appearing – at least briefly – in the mainstream. It's normally pretty fringe even to the gothic crowd but has been gaining followers outside of Japan not only in the US but also Europe. A few of the Chanel looks manage to be really sophisticated compared with the typical GL styles you find out of Japanese retailers or custom-made on ebay.
January 07, 2010 at 2:45 am, Anna, aka "Shoe said:
Love it! I would love to see this trend make it to mainstream fashions. My favorite outfit (and the SHOES!!!) is the B&W dress with white tights: http://www.shoeblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/1…
December 26, 2009 at 4:26 pm, dustbury.com » Haze-compatible said:
[...] If twelve seems awfully Nabokovian to you, you’re not alone: What I found remarkable was how successful the collection was in merging the extreme frothiness of Lolita with signature Chanel textured bouclés. It really does add an unexpected youthfulness to otherwise conservative materials. [...]
December 23, 2009 at 6:17 pm, evie said:
I think most people do not dress up for anything. I love any excuse to put on some fancy clothes. But, I am always amazed at how few people, men
or women, dress up to go out.
December 23, 2009 at 3:13 pm, Ladies fashion shoes said:
wow great collection
December 22, 2009 at 7:49 pm, galligator said:
Sorry folks, somehow comments were disabled on this earlier. All better now