Chloé Paris Fashion Week S/S 2013

Six magnificent decades of the House of Chloé have doubtlessly changed the course of fashion. And before we review this season’s collection, let us take you on a brief journey to Paris in the year of 1952, where it all began. Tired of the stiff formality of the 50s fashion, and predominance of haute couture, Gaby Aghion wanted to create something that she felt the market was at the time craving – a line of wearable, high-quality clothes she used to call luxury prêt-à-porter. Hence, the Ready-To-Wear market, as we know it was born. In the years that followed, designers such as Lagerfeld, McCartney, Philo and McGibbons incorporated their masterminds into the brand’s heritage. Therefore, a colossal task was set for the Chloé’s current creative director, Clare Waight Keller, but she lived up to it.

Throughout the collection the ideas of French feminine poise and British masculine structure interlaced beautifully. The designer kept the colors very Chloé (we’ve seen a lot of whites, nudes, pastels and navy) putting the main focus on the shapes. Waight Keller added some volume to the brand’s traditional coats and knee-long dresses, and elaborated her vision of the structured cropped top which played a big role in the her story for the spring of 2013 (she paired it with Bermuda shorts and high-wasited skirts). The structured solid pieces were softened and lightened with flowing translucent tunics, while the pleated tulle frocks and Pierrot ruffles gave the collection Chloé’s signature romantic look. The designer also referenced Phoebe Philo’s iconic 3-D daisies as well as Lagerfeld’s crystal-arrow embroidery, giving a special homage to the label’s sixtieth anniversary.

Seeing the collection, it seems to us that Clare Waight Keller found that one essential idea that gave the brand’s heritage a strong sense of continuum – The design is ever-evolving, but the essence of the design is perpetual:  “What’s stayed in my mind most is something the founder, Gaby Aghion, said in her interviews: ‘I don’t explain. I’m happy to live the life I wanted.’ That’s the spirit of Chloé, to me”.