Flat Shoes, Funnel Necks and Fanny Packs? A Look At Chanel's 2014 Haute Couture Collection.

It was a bold move by Karl Lagerfeld and CHANEL to put all their runway models in flat tennis shoes for their 2014 Spring Summer Haute Couture show, but it was a bad move.



Attempting to play up the 'sporty' aspect of the largely sparkly haute couture collection for Spring/Summer 2014, many of the models look like those dreadful commuter women who carry their heels in a bag while they take public transportation to work.



And, you know that if a 5'10" stick skinny model on the runway looks dumpy, any other woman who attempts to wear it will look god-awful.

To top it off, the sneakers are ugly (lace or sequin covered with gossamer shoelaces) and not unlike what you see overweight sweat-suit clad mothers wearing in Palm Springs.

Some of the sneakers on the runway:


I've never been a fan of funnel necks and fanny packs and this collection was full of them.

Funnel necks and flats:



That said, many of the pieces in the large collection are beautiful - especially the floor length gowns- and all have the expert craftmanship expected of CHANEL. Mixing textures and patterns, the collection includes everything from structured dresses and rompers to harem pants and glittering sheer suits.

Some of the beautiful gowns:




In terms of the styling, the models sported hair pieces and crystals applied under their eyes, both of which were interesting:


But I had a lot of trouble getting beyond the fanny packs, knee pads and elbow pads on some of the models (I've already bagged on the ugly shoes). I don't care if it's CHANEL, it's a friggen fanny pack, for god's sake. And unless you are going down on a Rap artist or taking part in a luxury roller derby, no one should wear embellished elbow and knee pads.

Fanny packs with matching elbow and knee pads:





And this? WTF is this?:


I like the large emphasis on the waist in many of the silhouettes and the take on their classic CHANEL jacket in this collection. But, given how much I usually admire CHANEL couture, the unflattering bubble skirts, old-lady sneakers and silly accessories ruined the collection -which does have some amazing pieces in it - for me.

Take a look and decide for yourself.

The Entire Collection:






















Close-up images of some of the prettiest and ugliest details:








A video of the entire runway show:


CHANEL

TIA Lingerie Design Winners & Finalists Modeled By Helena Christensen

above: Morphology by Nikolay Bojilov was the International Winner of the 2010 Triumph Inspiration Award (TIA)

Triumph International, one of the world's largest underwear manufacturers, kicked off last Fall's London Fashion Week with a star studded catwalk show led by young designers, for the international final of the Triumph Inspiration Award 2010.



The event was hosted by Actor and Dancer Adam Garcia, and judged by the fashion industry’s crème de la crème – Supermodel, Helena Christensen; Photographer, Rankin; British Fashion Designer, Matthew Williamson; Actress and Singer Karen Mok; Chair of British Fashion Council Development Committee, Hilary Riva and Head of Global Brand Management Triumph, Suzanne McKenna.



The panel declared Nikolay Bojilov from Bulgaria the winner of this year’s global final of the Triumph Inspiration Award with the design “Morphology”, shown below:



Despite strong competition from 26 other countries and much deliberation by the judging panel, Nikolay Bojilov scooped the prize of €15,000 and the phenomenal opportunity to work alongside Triumph’s design team in Hong Kong to turn their winning showpiece into a commercial garment, to be sold as a limited edition piece in Triumph’s stores and selected outlets worldwide from summer 2011.

The 2nd place was awarded to Amaya Cárcamo from Spain with “Wood Sensation” who won €10,000:


The 3rd place winner Ludovico Loffreda from Italy with “Memory of Shape” who won € 5,000:


This was the third year that Triumph International, one of the world’s leading lingerie and shapewear brands, invited young students from world-renowned fashion schools to prove their creativity in an international design contest of the highest calibre.

By interpreting the design theme “Shape Sensation”, upcoming talent took centre stage with their multinational view of shapes and silhouettes. This year, for the first time, a one-piece design was allowed to be entered instead of only a two-piece bra and briefs, but the big goal remained the same: win over the jury with the inspiration and creativity of a unique showpiece.

Here are the other finalists, modeled by Helena Christensen, each of which took first place in their individual country competitions.

below left: Kao Tsai Hsuan - GEOMETRY - Shih Chien University Fashion Design Department
below right: Tovah Cottle - BODY ARCHITECTURE - MSIT


below left: Phan Thi Cam Tu - PREGNANCY -Architecture Univerity of HCMC
below right: Isolde Mayer - STONE COLD - Fashion Institute of Vienna


below left: Caroline du Chastel - CUBISTERY - Atelier Lannaux, Bruxelles
below right: Justin Singh - SANDS OF TIME - George Brown College


below left: Xu Yi -FEI(extraordinary)/FEI (fly) - Sichuan Fine Art Institute
below right: Dennis Lyngsø - MOTH METAMORPHOSIS - Teko


below left: Liisa Nieminen -90-60-90- Aalto University School of Art and Design, Helsinki
below right: Sofie Insam - SHAPE EXPLOSION - Istituto Marangoni, Paris et Milan


below left: Manuel Marte - HUMAN ANIMAL SYMBIOSIS -ESMOD, Munich
below right: Eugenia Dimopoulou - FLESH -A.K.T.O., Greece


below left: Da Da Sze Man Tang - DIAMONDDRESS -FAST- ITCSS
below right: Yadvi Aggarwal - BACK TO THE BASICS -Pearl Academy of Fashion


below left: Suzanne Ferncombe - IF I WERE A BOY? -Limerick School of Art & Design, Ireland
below right: Karine Feldman - QUEEN ELIZABETH THE 1ST -‘Shenkar’ College of engineering and design, Israel


below left: Ayumi Kawase - A BRASSERIE IMAGING A FOREST -Bunka Fashion College
below right: Peet Dullaert - SENSIMOTION -ArtEZ


below left: Anette Boman - SENSATIONALLY SHAPED INFORMATION -ESMOD, Oslo
below right: Cristina Homen de Gouveia - BODY FRAME -Faculdade de Arquitectura da Universidade Técnica de Lisboa, Portugal


below left: Grace Eliana Sugiarto - PRESERVED BEAUTY -Raffles Design Institute, Singapore
below right: Elin Engström - IMAGOMANIA -The Swedish School of Textiles, Borås


below left: Benjamin Blarer - HIT-OR-MISS -FHNW-HGK Basel Institute Fashion-Design
below right: Isabella Newell - CIRCUS FREAKS - Central Saint Martins:



Overall global TIA winner Bojilov not only won the prize of Euros 15,000 (with the 2nd and 3rd places winning Euros 10,000 and Euros 5,000 respectively) but also the opportunity to work alongside Triumph’s design team in Hong Kong to turn their winning showpiece into a commercial garment to be sold as a limited edition piece in Triumph’s stores and selected outlets worldwide from September 2011.

Triumph International is one of the world’s largest underwear manufacturers. The company enjoys a presence in over 120 countries with its core brands Triumph®, sloggi®, Valisère® and HOM®. Triumph employs more than 37,500 people; in 2008, the company achieved a turnover of CHF 2.37 billion.

images and info courtesy of Triumph International