Timestamp: Wednesday, September 5, 6:25pm
Location: Chelsea Art Museum, 556 W 22nd Street, the Forbidden Zone
Rating: +++, a highpoint of this NY Fashion Week
Text, Vivian G. Kelly
Photographs, J. Ecochard
Background 411:
The label burst onto the scene in 2004 when Renee Zellweger wore a Marchesa dress to the London premiere of Bridget Jones. Since then, designers Georgina Chapman and Keren Craig have been go-to girls for A-list actresses needing to look stunning on the Red Carpet.
Other than the tricky lighting due to the models being poised on Lucite boxes lit with fluorescent tungsten rods, this is an example of how to do a great presentation. The clothes were grouped into 11 small vignettes for easy viewing. It was obvious the designers had carefully edited themselves. This format enabled us to view the entire collection in a record 10 minutes despite the dense crowd of editors, retailers and supporters. The color palette was a pleasing mix between sophisticated nude, ivory and indigo with pieces in vibrant cerise like the stunning cerise silk organza empire dress that burned itself onto our brain for the rest of the week.
Brides to be could consider the white silk-chiffon draped long dress with lace, mirror and hand-embroidered detail on the bodice. This is a gown that would work beautifully even if it were not your first time down the aisle. Even better, it’s a gown you’ could [and would] wear to another big occasion.
But it was Vignette #7 that really grabbed us. In it, the designers skillfully referenced YSL’s iconic “Les Russes” collection from the seventies. The indigo colored silk chiffon with hand-embroidered gold appliqué was a worthy homage.
Hair, makeup and nails – Marchesa combines sophisticated glamour with an exciting undercurrent of edginess running through it which puts these creations in another league. Accordingly, the hair Teddy Charles [for Logics Professional Haircare] was Princess Bride-ish, parted precisely dead center and long. Talia Schobrook and the Stila team created a polished face that complicated the sophistication of the clothes. The surprising twists were the black nails [and toes] by CND [Creative Nail Design].
Nail 411 with CND’s Jan Arnold:
Q: What’s new?
A: The nail as “an elongated high heel” and the Lucite reverse French manicure.
As always, Jan graciously gave us the lowdown on nails going forward, and is truly an example of what you’d look like if you too had perfect nails. Enthuses Jan, “ Longer nails are so exciting, they’re like wearing high heels, and they make you stand taller. Another great thing is that when nails are longer, they get less dirty than when they’re short.”
Jan herself was wearing CND’s new Lucite reverse French Manicure. The new manicure matches the season’s Lucite heels and is a welcome change from the now ubiquitous French Manicure.
Time commitment: Count on 3 hours the first time, 1 hour for each maintenance appointment.