Shoe blog

Jillian Lewis Fall 09 Collection

Project Runway alum Jillian Lewis showed her Fall ’09 collection in presentation format this year. In case you heard, Presentations is NY Fashion Week’s answer to financial recession. You can have them in a smaller spacea, people can come in an out and take many many, photos, and they require fewer high-priced people to stage. Presentations come in many styles. Some consists of models standing in a row on platforms looking a bit like living dolls. Some are very much like shows, but they run repeatedly for an hour, and some combine both. Jillian Lewis did the doll-like thing, but there was nothing doll-like about her collection.

She had many “puzzle” pieces (her words, not mine). They involved a patchwork type technique with sheer and opaque fabrics as below:

Fancy, huh? I actually thought the Puzzle Pants would be awesome as leggings on your average fashion-lovin’ lady, but it would take a brave woman to pull off that puzzle dress. (Perhaps this is that woman). But wait….did you see the shoes?????

Guess who made them. No, seriously. Guess. Actually, I’ll give you some more material to work with first:

I thought these shoes were super cute and that they went well with the collection. Here’s a hint on the source. The brand is not uncredibly well-known, BUT it has been mentioned on this very blog several times as making designer knock-offs. For a knock-off brand, they are pretty pricey (around the $200) mark for most pairs. More clues here and here.

Alright, I’ve had my fun. Jillian Lewis sourced her shoes right from Pour La Victoire. They are relatively affordable, on trend, and some of the same styles can be found online like the:

Pour la Victoire ‘Sacha’ sandal which is $289 at Nordstroms or $339 at Zappos or $314 at ShopBop (how’s that for giving you store options?)

Pour la Victoire ‘Jeana’ boot on sale for $159 (50% off) at Nordstroms for the black patent version or $100 at Shopbop in the gray version seen on the model

Pour la Victoire ‘Bianca’ sandal which is $259 at Nordstroms,  $279 at Endless.com in black and $292 at Shopbop in gray

Jillian’s collection was all about the “Urban Warrior.” It was very sensual and extremely body conscious. The models seated on their silver trunks wore very dark smudgy eye makeup and 20s style headpieces over teased hair. Jillian’s famously curly hair was not at all teased. In fact, I almost didn’t recognize her when I first saw her at the show. (Hey, it was crowded! Jillian is mighty popular). See here’s a photo:

She was charming and very excited about her first show (since her debut on the PR finale last season). PR alums Jack Mackerouth and Malan Breton also put in appearances.

Overall, her collection was very cool with BEAUTIFUL signature trench coats body-skimming knits.

So what do you guys think? Do you like Jillian’s new collection or do you prefer her PR pieces?