Sarah Burton, the new Creative Director of the Alexander McQueen line after McQueen’s passing, presented the fall 2011 McQueen collection at Paris fashion week.  The collection is, “The Ice Queen and Her Court”, and it is just that cold and courtly with “heritage silhouettes” but also feminane somewhat soft, full of textures, feathers, and fur.  Love the shoes and boots, the lacing seems very sexual in the shapes of bare skin it leaves.  I also enjoy the contrast of the matte pvc full length gloves and cropped pvc leggings (with that great front knee zipper detail) with all the textural dresses.  I’ve been intrigued by the look of an oversized fur trimmed hood after seeing Chris Corner’s parka in the new IAMX video, and more so now, seeing it here.  Wouldn’t have minded seeing more harness in this collection!  I’ve been dreaming of Ice Queen inspired coats and dresses since Tilda Swinton’s costumes in Narnia, I really love the whole aesthetic of this collection.

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The runway shows at FAT, Toronto’s alternative fashion week.

Wrath by Asphyxia

Asphyxia is the fashion creations of designer Alexandra De Francesco of Toronto. It does not appear to be a fully developed brand but more a fashion collection by an artist.  I would guess however that the designs seen in this runway show are available as custom pieces by request through the email found on Asphyxia’s website.  It was a beautiful collection of white and black textures, lace and satin that was in line with De Francesco’s focus on textiles. The long flowing dresses were the backbone of the collection, but I personally really enjoyed the short dresses for the stripes and sections made through the stitching together of different textured fabrics. I do wish the collection had been shown with a more diverse range of footwear. Each look was shown with stack platform boots and I would have rather seen the dresses paired with heels and boots that better fit the mood of the collection.  The platform boots did fit quite nicely with the short dresses as a contrast to the detailed lace, but they were a distraction with the long dresses.  It does point to the fact that new styles, trends, and takes on alternative fashion are emerging much faster in clothing than footwear.  It is always a struggle to find good footwear to compliment newer looks and this was a collection of fresh looks and dresses. I hope to see more develop from De Francesco and Asphyxia soon!

image source flickr.com/photos/alternativeartsandfashionweek

- Jennifer