October 2007

Today was wonderful. Big shows, and not a clunker in the bunch. I left Nina Ricci feeling like my feet couldn't touch the ground. Part of the uplift came from the purity of the staging. The models walked into the blackened tent from a sun-drenched crack at the far end, which opened onto the Tuileries gardens. The music was classical stringed instruments. The show felt pure and impassioned...

If France, you have to have a paper ticket to get into the shows. They arrive via messenger or post, often the day before the event (because the PR people need to scramble to make sure the front row ranks are just right). All of this means you may not know if you're invited until the last minute.

Sometimes the tickets just never come, and it's a sad, Waiting-for-Godot situation. I had a scare regarding Chanel (it arrived eventually, after some phone calls), and wasn't invited to Dior, Valentino, or Dries Van Noten this season...

After the Chloe show today, we headed to one of Stacey's and my favorite shows of the week: Martin Grant. It's a low-key affair. No Kanye West, no Courtney Love—just people who work in fashion and a socialite or two (Lee Radziwell is always there)...

Watching the work of your fashion heroes during this week is fun, but even more fun is discovering new people who inspire. Here's a look back at the three steps it took for me to fall in love with the so-new-she's-still-unsigned French singer Soko.

STEP 1: Tuesday night, I took my friend Sened to the Jeremy Scott/Colette party at Elysée Montmartre...

When I saw Scott Shuman of The Sartorialist outside of Chanel this morning, I promptly ambushed him with my Chicago fashion question.

First off, he had to give love to the city by saying that he remembers getting really excited to check out Ultimo when he visited in the '80s (Scott's from Indianapolis). As far as shooting street style, he thinks there are neighborhoods that are good, but so many Chicagoans drive, which makes it hard...

Ah, Chanel. You could never mistake it for any other show, even if Karl Lagerfeld incorporates other trends that are in vogue.

Just pick any of this season's nouveautés and it will be there, but looking very Chanel, of course. Romper onesie? Check. Transparency? Check. '90s Nirvana plaid, wide legged denim, black and white graphics? Check, check, check...