From Runway to Realway - Is It A Steal?

Since I'm on the topic of red carpet looks this week,
I thought that this video was interesting.


Do you think that legislation should be passed to allow fashion designer's runway and red carpet looks to not be copied for 3 years?
Is is true that allowing for these iconic looks to be reproduced for the hoi polloi is causing a dearth of fashion innovation?
Does the design for a wrap dress constitute intellectual property?
And honestly, is anything that you see on the runway really new?

Don't get me wrong. 
I'm against all brand counterfeiting from fake Hermes Birkins to fake VCA Alhambras.
But if Verdura created the curb chain bracelet for Greta Garbo in 1939, does that mean that I can never wear a curb chain bracelet by any other designer or by no designer at all?
Especially given that the look is now generic.

And what constitutes a true original design in fashion?
We've seen trains and veils and mermaid hems, bustles and bows, long and short, structured and unstructured...ad infinitum. I just don't know where you draw the line at original.

And did the Diva of the wrapdress, Diane von Furstenberg, help herself to an iconic design by Claire McCardell.
I don't know the answer to any of this, but I'm not sure that new legislation is needed.

What do you think?

Paris 2010 - The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

New York Magazine has compiled the 17 Best Looks from Paris Fashion Week
So we have the good such as this Betty Page style 1940's glamour girl look by Dior
I always appreciate Galiano's historical references and his fashion in jokes
and the dress is actually wearable

And the bias cut beaded 1920s Flapper Style dress by Louis Vuitton was fun too

But what was going on at Chanel and how did these outfits come off as being in the Best list?
If they aren't bad then I'm blind

And I'm also not too impressed with Pilati's pieces for YSL

But getting to the downright ugly we've got Lanvin

OK, the navy blue dress on the left is totally minimalist chic and I would wear it any day (if I could afford it)
But what is going on with that outfit on the right, I can't even figure out what the material is
It is as though Lanvin's 'art project' jewelry from a few seasons ago has been morphed into 'art project' clothes
And this look is supposed to be one of the best of the Paris 2010 season?

Prada Spring 2011 - Sending Out The Stripes

Photo from The Sartorialist

Is there anyone besides me who is totally confused by this collection.

I like color and I like stripes but this Prada Spring 2011 collection is just all over the place.

Would you buy these clothes?

Vanity Fair - The International Best Dressed List

Well, I finally received my copy of the September issue...no, not Vogue but Vanity Fair with the 2010 International Best Dressed List
While as usual I didn't agree with all of the choices on their list I couldn't argue with

Princess Mary of Denmark

Jay Penske

Ed Burns and Christy Turlington

I would have liked to have seen Victoria Beckham, Tilda Swinton, blogger Metscan, Nick Cannon and blogger James Andrew.
Who would you have added to the list?

Milan's Master Hatter

From the WSJ an interesting article on the demise of craftsmanship

Milan's master hat maker Lorenzo Borghi tells his tale; a slowly dying art

Today, Mr. Borghi is 70 years old, but he can still be found working in the shop from dawn to dusk at least six days a week.

He mostly works alone, relying on his wife and a friend for help when the orders pile up. He has no apprentice, and past attempts to teach younger generations have proved unsuccessful. "The first thing they ask is 'How much are you gonna pay me?'" says Mr. Borghi. "Then they ask 'Do I have to work weekends, too?'"

He doesn't say it, but the contempt is clear in his voice and expression. While it is tempting to dismiss Mr. Borghi's critiques as simple intergenerational mistrust, it is equally difficult to imagine the young, iPhone-equipped Italians lounging around in the piazza nearby spending their days as the septuagenarian maestro does, hunched over an ancient wooden desk, struggling to get this fold just right or adjust that feather to the correct height. "The hardest part is finding talented hands," he says. "I could teach the rest."

I find it interesting that in a high fashion city like Milan, a master craftsman can't find good help.  Aren't there fashion students who want to learn the skill of bespoke hat making and maybe be the next Philip Treacy?

Luckily, his and other Italian master craftsman's skills are being documented on film.

Recently an Italian company called Valore Italiano, or "Italian Quality," began filming Mr. Borghi and other artisans like him as part of an initiative to create a visual documentary of their skills that can be used to teach future generations. "These master craftsmen are national treasures," says Mario Pirolli, president of Valore Italiano and artificer of the initiative. "We have to try and salvage what we can before their knowledge and experience are lost for good."

Excellent, because fashion wouldn't be as much fun without great hats

Don't you agree?

Lusting After Lower Heels

From the Wall Street Journal

Stilettos—So Two Years Ago
The return of the 'kitten' coincides with shaky economic times

so do serious times call for serious shoes?

That leads some to speculate whether there's a relationship between a sinking heel and the stock market. Gary Loveman, CEO of Harrah's Entertainment Inc., was reported saying earlier this year that he likes seeing women wearing stilettos in his casinos because he believes it means guests are more likely to spend more.

on the other hand

But not everyone thinks the kitten heel means bad times. Shorter shoes might be "an indication of the recession we've just been through," suggests Jeffrey Hirsch, editor of the Stock Trader's Almanac, adding that such correlations have "not so much" validity anymore.

Good market, bad market, I don't care. But enough already with the 6 inch stilettos.