Hello-Hello, and Happy Wednesday.
Today we are brief, focusing primarily on a topic we have chatted about before, it’s something that rolls around every 6 months or so. It has to do with Fashion Week and it’s more-than-silly. Any ideas yet? Could it be a certain menswear designer? Who also does the Black Fleece line for Brooks Brothers? Does this help?
Jacques Brinon/AP via Washington Post
Yes indeedy, it is time once again for the Princess to pounce, Thom Browne’s runway show closed out men’s fashion week in Paris.
Not everyone thought highly of the presentation, as seen in this story by Jeffrey Felner:
There comes a point when a designer pushes the envelope too far and sends out a collection that is so absurd and so outrageous that it might be called an insult to the intelligence of those in the audience and maybe even just a colossal waste of time. Mr. Browne who has never been known for anything other than shock for shock value may have outdone himself this time.
Perhaps the nautical styles will be more appealing.
Thom Browne Facebook Page
Or not.
More from Mr. Felner’s story.
…this is not theater, this is not pushing the envelope, this is completely and patently absurd and which would have qualified for a circus side-show rather than a runway presentation.
Here is a different perspective from Maura Judkis in the Washington Post Style blog:
Browne, who is known for playing with the proportion on men’s suits, sent models lurching down the runway like tiny, preppy Frankensteins in oversized, shoulder-padded suits. The show called to mind several influences, among them Herman Munster, “Beetlejuice,” varsity football, WASPs, S&M and golf.
“Tiny, preppy Frankensteins.” Somehow that phrase is troubling.
Maybe if we take a look at some of the pink and green in the collection we’ll see something to like.
Thom Browne Facebook Page
Maybe not.
The WaPo blog points out that “preppy patterns adorned Browne’s oversized suits.”
Thom Browne FB Page/Jacques Brinon/AP via The Washington Post
Technically, there are some motifs one might find at actual prep retailers. Here is what really had me howling, a caption from one of the photos accompanying the Washington Post blog:
Browne was also inspired by S&M culture. Here, a model walks the runway in a preppy-patterned studded bondage hood.
Seeing the words “preppy-patterned studded bondage hood” made my eyes bleed, while I was simultaneously reaching for the whiskey bottle for a quick nip to kill the pain antacids.
The Times review of mens’ fashion week included this about the show.
Everybody had a laugh at Thom Browne’s “Jocks and Punks” show, with mounds and mounds of shoulder padding that nearly ate the models’ heads.
We do love a little argyle every now and again, perhaps a spot of that will diminish our critical reaction.
Jacques Brinon/AP via The Washington Post
Then again, it might not.
Back to Mr. Felner’s story in the Examiner:
As far as I am concerned, this is a collection that should be mocked and held up as an example of what is wrong with fashion today. 20 and 30 something editors and fashion victims who declare this as fabulous deserve to be fired and magazines that show this as editorial deserve to be boycotted by the fashion cognoscenti.”
Delphine Achard/Women's Wear Daily
I doubt “silly” was meant in a complimentary or lighthearted way in WWD‘s review:
In yet another silly show, the American fashion prankster paraded two breeds of tough guy: the S&M punk and the bulked-up American sportsman.
To be fair, yours truly is absolutely the last person on the planet Mr. Browne would target as a potential customer, we’re not at all the person he is designing for, nor is The Consort, far from it. But this one was just so ridiculously overdone I couldn’t resist sharing it with our treasured readers, after all, we have suffered through more than one collection by Mr. Browne together.
There is a related story that is very funny, a reporter for The Mirror (UK) decided to do his own version of the look for a story on how appealing the styles would be in London.
Purely in the interest of scientific research, I created my own monstrous version of the outfits seen at Thom Browne’s Paris Fashion Week show– all oversized shoulder pads like something from 60s TV show The Munsters.
The Mirror UK
He looks very chic, no?
The Mirror UK
You can read Steve Myall’s story and see more photos by clicking here.
One other quick note: in our preview of new and cool things coming to the Princess we shared a new bracelet Kiel James Patrick designed exclusively for the Preppy Princess. It is from Kiel’s just-launched Triton Collection.
Kiel James Patrick Exclusive Preppy Princess Bracelet
We promised to let people know the price and availability; they bracelets are $38, we expect to start shipping them around the 8th of February. You can pre-order yours by clicking here.
G’bye until next time!
The Preppy Princess 