Paris Fashion Week: The sportif trend invades Balenciaga, Carven and more for Spring 2014
Balenciaga and Carven for Spring 2014 »
Photography by Peter Stigter
Balenciaga Spring 2014
Balenciaga Spring 2014
“I wish I had these on my feet right now,” one journalist lamented, inspecting a pair of Nicholas Kirkwood sport sandals at the designer’s Spring 2014 preview. Yes you heard that right. The same designers who brought heels to new heights have discovered rubber soles and flats.
It’s all part of the sportif trend which has a grip on Europe. On day two of the Paris Fashion Week Spring 2014, the backdrop at Carven was a half-pipe and the opening soundtrack was of skateboard wheels rolling up and down. The boarding spirit appeared in colourful camouflage prints with insets of camo lace. But Carven designer Guillaume Henry’s boxy jean jackets, A-line dresses and long stiff coats didn’t look made for motion.
He’s not alone. This is Paris, after all. Not the land of Lycra.
Alexander Wang, who built his career on elevating activewear, has settled into his second season at the helm of Balenciaga quite nicely. His new-fangled fabrics and mystery treatments included a Perfecto jacket that looked like raffia but was actually woven leather. He also showed rubbery florals, perforated skins and knits fused to leather in boxy jackets and A-line minis. But again, these clothes looked more suited to perching at a party than going anywhere fast. Unless you count the smoking jackets with draped backs, worn pant-free and suitable for long strides.
There was some type of disturbance at the Nina Ricci show, held in a tent at the Tuileries. From where I sat I could see a topless person with words scribbled on their back waving at the photographers. It was a two-second diversion from a pretty mélange of ruffles, pleats and lace.
Bernadette Morra is the former editor-in-chief of FASHION magazine. She has been covering the Canadian and international fashion scenes for more than 30 years, first at The Toronto Star, then at FASHION. Over her long career Bernadette has interviewed many fashion world legends including Karl Lagerfeld, Marc Jacobs, Linda Evangelista, Cindy Crawford and Gianni Versace.
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