TUTORIALS

Saturday, October 10, 2015

Doll's Eye View: Paris Summer '16 Trends Part I (of 2)

After coming off my Milan Fashion Week high, my first feeling about Paris was that designers were all over the place with no collective voice. Add to that a small resurgence of androgynous looks from the 80's, baggy clothes hinting of the 1990's and tarted up looks from this, the "Kardashian decade," I found myself less than enthusiastic about a market that once dominated my mindset. It was only after Paris fashion week was over when I took a good look at the ensemble of looks I had chosen did I recall that France is a market where designers push fashion forward with experimental concepts. It's also a market that prides itself on luxury brands and timeless classics. And for this reason, I have chosen to divide my report into two: one for those of you with dolls who like edgy clothes and a second one for dolls with more classic tastes. For right now, hang on and tightened up those safety belts....it's going to be a bumpy ride ahead!!!!

Sixties Hi-Def
There is a strong hint of '60's "mod" in next summer's fashions. The overall silhouette is pretty simple--A-line dresses, shifts and shorts, but this time in 3-dimensional textures. This is fun fashion that invites the crafts person to take over the reigns. String objects together, consider placemats as suitable material for summer gear. Let your imagination loose!!!!

Urban Hipster
At the base of these looks are urban staples: jeans, short skirts, denim jackets and the like. But instead of the "same old thing" these looks all have an interesting twist. The jeans skirt has triangles of contrasting fabric sewing into an asymmetrical look. Black jeans has a lightning strike of silver foil.
 
Holy Moly
The story here lies in the materials. Instead of traditional cotton or silk, take a look around for perforated fabrics, lattice work, mesh, screen or punch a few holes (in a strategic design pattern). In short, take a look around for other types of materials (the mesh covering of that fruit or vegetable???) and consider them for dolly's next edgy outfit!

Musee d'Art Moderne
Art is always in and we love how the Europeans incorporate it into their collections. This is quite simple. Blow up a photo and print on fabric. Make a few brush strokes against a long silk skirt or add a few beads or sequins to bring a bird print alive.

Body Beautiful
This theme places the focus clearly on the body. The materials are a mix of old and new: macramé at Balmain, foiled leather at Estaban Cortazar. The shapes are simple and close to the body. But think out of the box when it comes to execution.
Waris wears a scaled down version of this super sleek look. the underskirt is suspended from one shoulder in a two-way stretch rayon/lycra jersey. The top is made from metallic leather that's been given a layer of silver foil. It's what I call--dressing for the 21st century!
 
Designer to the stars (including Rihanna & Beyoncé), the skirt produced by Balmain is macramé with a top made from jersey slats that crisscross over the body. Liu wears the dolly version. Her skirt is made from vintage crochet stitched together into this slim skirt. Like her full scale counterpart, bands of jersey crisscross over the body and are sewn into a panel at the back.
 
Couture Askew
At first glance these gowns are.....somewhat ugly.....but then look a little closer and see the beauty in the drapes. It's a wacked out version of high fashion. The materials are still noble (silk, chiffon, charmeuse), but the construction has an off-kilter look that I think would translate into some pretty interesting dresses for dolly!

Livin' Large
The look is voluminous, cool, but still quite chic. Think wide trousers, loosely draped tops and dresses that drop easily to the ankles in a couple sweeps of white linen. By working in black or white, these silhouettes just work! It's an understated way to wear high fashion, without the pretention.

Sex and the City
Sleek, sexy and thoroughly modern, there is enough 2-way stretch jersey to define a new millennium style, yet enough of the body revealed to keep things interesting. We loved how jewelry is incorporated in such a new way with this group. We love how the lines curve around the body to accentuate sexy parts of the body. Construction wise, anything goes. There are no rules (and even fewer when it comes to dolly's latest creations!) Think out of the box. But keep it simple. Keep it clean. Keep it MODERN!!!
 
Up next---A "softer side" side to Paris Fashion Week.
 

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14 comments:

  1. Wspaniały pokaz mody i niesamowite, piękne kreacje.
    Pozdrawiam bardzo serdecznie!

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    1. Olla wrote:
      Great fashion show and an amazing , beautiful creations.
      Yours very sincerely !

      Thank you, Olla. These trends gave me an excuse to try something new for my dolls. See you soon.

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  2. Trying out unusual materials sounds like a lot of fun! I love your silver and white dress and the others too, great interpretations of the large clothes! The "Sex and the City" look is perfect in doll size :-). Great post as always, and I look forward to the second part!

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    1. Thank you, Linda. There are so many ordinary clothes made from the usual fabrics. So from time to time, it's interesting to introduce more unexpected materials into the mix. The sharp. clear designs of both the Sex & the City and the Body Beautiful themes is what I like to see on today's catwalks. I want to explore more a few of the looks on this page in future posts!

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  3. OMG! Your dolly interpretations are magnificent. I love them. I've got to trying making some Paris inspired fashions for some of my girls. TFS

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    1. Thank you KMQ. At first, I wasn't so thrilled about the Paris collections. (I think I was turned off by some of the models they used.) But when I really analyzed the designs, I saw a lot that could be beautifully adapted to the doll. The silver/white ensemble at the top of the page is what I like to see on catwalks for fashion in the 21st century. I will be exploring some of these looks in depth in later posts..

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  4. Holy moly, is right! I LOVE this entire collection. I'm with KMQ. I immediately wanted to recreate some of these fashions for my dollies.

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    1. Wonderful!!! Glad you found something to inspire. The Holy Moly group had me running to my kitchen to see what I could use for dolly clothes!!! There are some very creative ideas on this page. So I'll be exploring more of these items more in depth in future posts!

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    1. I really love the opening outfit and am really happy with the result of foiling leather! I'll be showing that outfit up close in the near future!

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  6. Wow April, these are tough to replicate!!! You did as usual a great job with the miniatures, and the second dress is simply amazing.
    Now this is the kind of collection that is going to trickle slowly into some "original idea" in the future, I'm intrigued by those Sharon Wauchob embroidered trousers......

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    1. With the exception of the Couture Askew group, realizing most of what you see, isn't as difficult as you'd think because the silhouettes are pretty simple. Some of the very sleek looks I really adore and plan to do a post dedicated to, perhaps, the fabric--a rayon/lycra jersey which is crucial to the draped knit looks I've featured here. For Paris Part II, there are many more jumpsuits and pants. Lots more "ingredients" to stir into the creative wave-length!!!!

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  7. Beaucoup de belles idées. Il ne manque plus qu'à créer toutes ces robes !

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  8. C'est vrai. Chaque saison je suis tempte par ce grand choix d'idees sur les podiums!!!

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