Fall 2013 Menswear: Alexander McQueen.

Previously on Alexander McQueen.

The backdrop for this show was more like a movie set than a traditional catwalk, with models traveling between wood-panelled rooms that had the look and feel of vintage train compartments. But while the decor was old-fashioned, the clothes were all about extreme, disturbing smoothness. Every outfit focused in on classic tailoring (a nod to McQueen's recently-opened Savile Row menswear store), with an overtly creepy tinge thanks to the smooth, almost android-like appearance of the models. Some even wore transparent masks, giving their faces a glassily inhuman appearance to match the sculpted  Brylcreem hair.

pics from Style.com unless captioned otherwise.

These outfits are proof that it's entirely possible to make a supposedly sombre black pinstripe suit look loud and weird. McQueen wisely kept the tailoring slim and subtle while experimenting with pattern work, meaning that almost every suit was a recognisable one-off without looking too out-there. The main on-trend detail was the lack of tie, which in this instance actually worked quite well. First of all, a full suit, buttoned to the neck but without a necktie, is traditionally the outfit of nebbish weirdos -- which fits in perfectly with the unsettling, serial-killerish vibe of this collection. Secondly,  these suits are far more mature than the typical buttoned-to-the-collar shirt outfits we've been seeing on the catwalks (and on hipster guys. And Jonny Lee Miller's Sherlock Holmes.) for the past year or so.

There's a trick to wearing a collared shirt with no tie, and it's mostly to do with the shape and spread of the collar. As a rule, the distance between the points of the collar should correspond with the width of the tie, meaning that wider ties go with collars that spread out at a wider angle, and so on. If you think about it, this makes sense because the closer together the points of the collar, the less room there is for a tie. If you look at the shirts in this McQueen show, the collars are all long and thin, and point almost directly downwards. If you were to wear a tie with these shirts, there would barely be enough room for the knot.

Also, if you take a look at the outfits as a whole, there isn't really any "need" for a tie. Ties are an essentially functionless object, and these suits are already busy enough that they don't need to be accessorised. Either the gap between the collar and the top of the waistcoat/lapels is so small that the presence of a tie would make it seem cramped, or the collar itself serves the decorative purpose of a tie -- for example, the bright, contrasting red of the collar in the picture below.

Probably the two most old-school nods to Savile Row tailoring are the wide lapels (not usually seen with narrow-spread collars, since lapels also tend to correspond with the width of the tie) and pagoda shoulders. Pagoda shoulders take their name from the smooth, concave curve (like the roof of a pagoda!) formed by the peak at the edge of each shoulder, the best example in this post being the jacket pictured above.

The stained glass patterned outfits were undoubtedly the most modern in the collection, tying in with current womenswear trends for soft but brightly-patterned trouser suits.

The show closed with some of the most old-fashioned ensembles, taking inspiration from 19th-century smoking jackets, evening coats and velvet dressing gowns.

from here.

Previously on Fall 2013 Menswear: Dior Homme and the Illuminati.

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Alexander McQueen, Pre-Fall 2013: Puritans, Popes, and Vampire Queens.

Previously on Alexander McQueen.

As is often the case with Alexander McQueen, it was very difficult for me not to include every single outfit in the collection. This was a show so beautiful that the background for the lookbook photoshoot had to be blank, because anything else might have run the risk of overpowering the beauty of the clothes. Plus, the austerity of a whitewashed backdrop fit in with the puritanical theme.

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And when I say "puritanical", I don't mean that metaphorically. This season, Sarah Burton took her inspiration directly from priestly vestments, nuns' habits, and the severe black outfits of the Puritans. Featuring everything from medieval robes to 17th-century style buckled shoes, this collection was dramatic while still remaining entirely serious throughout.

The cape-effect tailoring on these gowns seems closely inspired by the chasuble (the outermost layer of a clergyman's ceremonial clothes), with some of the outfits going so far as to look like actual priests' robes. Others were a little more fantastical, allowing for conservatively high necklines and Puritan shoulders on top, but short skirts and leather thigh-highs on the bottom half.

I often see the word "costumey" used in fashion editorials, usually preceded by the phrase, "to avoid looking...". Well, it will probably come as no surprise whatsoever that I have no qualms about looking costumey. What's the point of high fashion if not to look interesting? And with with Alexander McQueen, "interesting" is a guarantee. The nipped-in waists and simple, tailored silhouettes could have come from any McQueen collection of the past ten years, but the severely monochrome colour palette and religious overtones are a definite step away from the more organic, animalistic inspirations of the pre-Sarah Burton era.

Regarding the costumey nature of Sarah Burton's designs, there were, as always, several ensembles that seemed to have been taken directly from the wardrobe of an evil witch-queen. I can only hope that one day the McQueen brand and/or Burton herself is hired to provide costumes for a fantasy movie, as with Jean-Paul Gaultier's work on The Fifth Element.

The black robes pictured below were probably the most literal interpretation of Christian liturgical clothing in the entire collection. Interestingly, there was no religious imagery present at any point in the lookbook. Rather than going full-on Madonna and festooning everything with crucifixes, the collection was accessorised by long chains with acorn pendants, an indication that Sarah Burton is very aware how easily this design theme could slip into parody.

Sarah Burton is known worldwide for designing Kate Middleton's wedding dress, so it's hardly surprising that this collection was rounded off by multiple wedding-appropriate gowns rather than the traditional one. Personally, I think this next outfit is a far more daring and beautiful style of wedding dress than the rather more conventional efforts put forward by most other big-name labels.

Previously on Alexander McQueen.

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Alexander McQueen, Spring 2013.

It's almost expected at this point for Alexander McQueen to be one of the most critically acclaimed shows of Fashion Week, but this season's collection was so good that I dove off a waterfall like Pocahontes and then spontaneously sprouted wings on the way down. While most of Spring season is taken up by catwalk shows that showcase too many trenchcoats and not enough imagination, McQueen (currently headed up by Sarah Burton, McQueen's protege) breezed in with 32 stunning outfits themed around bees and beehives.

The show opened with a series of suits in black and gold, bearing the recurring motif of honeycomb patterns and accompanied by stylised beekeeper hats. The silhouette was familiar: rigid bodices and nipped-in waists, with the angular peplums McQueen have been using for several seasons now. "Wasp waist" is already a well-known term, but some of these suit jackets reminded me more of the iridescent shells of a beetle.

I've written before about the dangers of taking a design theme too literally, but this is surely the exception that proves the rule. Not only is Sarah Burton an accomplished director when it comes to keeping the McQueen look fresh without deviating too far from recogniseable design tropes, but she can balance a potentially cartoonish theme like "beehives" at the perfect level between outright literalism and references too subtle or obscure for audiences to pick up on.

If this were any other label I'd balk at the idea of taking a beehive theme and producing outfits that combine not only beekeeper hats but golden honeycomb embroidery and wasp waists, but McQueen has a long history of delving into specific aspects of the British countryside and bringing out something that is simultaneously beautiful and horrifying. The main surprise in this collection is the lack of sting. While previous seasons have seen models wearing slaughtered game-animals and antlers, this collection was decidedly more cheerful.

The second section of the show was taken up by softer silhouettes: corseted gowns with frame crinolines, another aesthetic mined from the McQueen back-catalogue. The colours were warm and honeyish, with the gowns sometimes taking on a frothy and seasonal peasant-skirt silhouette: milkmaids rather than beekeepers.

If you look closely at some of the fabrics, there are tiny golden bees embroidered into the honeycombs.

This outfit, with its visor-like hat and golden honeycomb patterns, reminded me of acclaimed costume designer Eiko Ishioka.

The final phase of the show was dedicated to flowers: huge, overflowing bundles of blossoms covering the kind of crinoline dresses that will most likely only ever appear on runways and in private collections. The tortoiseshell bustiers from earlier on in the show lost their aggressive edge and became mere accessories to the rest of the outfit.

I tend to scoff at Spring collections that use florals because the idea is so grossly overused every year, but in this case I'll allow it because it's so complimentary to the rest of the show. This was a Spring collection through and through: exploding with energy, and celebrating themes of nature and rebirth without resorting to cliche.

Postscript: I'm v proud of myself for managing to not refer to any "buzz" surrounding this show, or indeed mention anything to do with the McQueen Bee.

Click here to read my previous Alexander McQueen fashion week reviews.

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Spring 2013 Menswear: Carven, Galliano, Demeulemeester, and McQueen.

Carven
I've seen this described as "botanical", which I love because when was the last time you saw womenswear being described as "botanical"? Guys, they're wearing florals. Deal with it.

All the models in this show were dressed like Victorian teacups and if you put them anywhere near a garden they'd either flee in terror or remain firmly on the footpaths until a servant had fetched some lawn furniture and a rug.

It'd take a very specific type of person to pull off outfits like these. The floral shorts-and-shirts combos are fine if you're fashion-forward, but several of the other outfits looked like something your grandmother would wear. The models got away with it, but only because the casting ran towards sallow youths rather than the muscle-bound gladiators we saw at Versace.

John Galliano
Galliano: now an entirely Galliano-free zone. Although this collection still retained the flamboyance we've come to expect from the brand, Galliano's own influences are beginning to thin out. Gone are the extravagant Dickensian villain outfits and oversized hats, and instead we get a solid theme: Surrealist art. First, Magritte's clouds...

... and later on, Dali's lobster, currently freed from its telephone perch.

Ann Demeulemeester
This collection definitely reminded me of Haider Ackermann's designs, although I wouldn't rate these as highly as his. The glowing jewel-tone fabrics are lovely, but a lot of the outfits ended up looking more like sleepwear than I think was originally intended.

Alexander McQueen
There was a strong link between this collection and the womenswear Resort line we saw a few weeks ago, particularly when it came to these metallic suits. On the whole, though, the menswear was a far less adventurous effort -- not that it matters because McQueen's couture lines are so consistently iconic and well-reviewed that the menswear could be the same boring suits year after year and no one would care. And these suits, at least, were far from boring.

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Resort 2013: Alexander McQueen, Mother of Pearl, Bibhu Mohapatra, and Roberto Cavalli.

Alexander McQueen
McQueen wins at everything again because as aways, they straight-up discarded your plebeian notions of "Resort clothing" and produced another Couture collection. Or, you know, what would be considered Couture by another designer. Because McQueen Couture usually involves a lot more antlers, brocade, and feathered crinolines.

pics from Style.com

Whatever this fabric is, it looks so much like galvanised steel that it's hard to imagine the model being able to move at all. Although the corset-belted waists were very McQueen, the chilly roboticism of the slim David Bowie suits were surprisingly distant from McQueen is usually known for.

If you don't like clothes with photorealistic insect motifs on them, then I don't like you.

These next two suits are what Tilda Swinton wears in the imaginary movie I'm writing about a Las Vegas talent-manager in the late 1970s who moonlights as a Kill Bill style bounty hunter. (All the "talent" she manages will be played by members of the cast of Teen Wolf.)

My favourite scene in this imaginary movie is probably the one where one of Tilda Swinton's business rivals drips some barbecue sauce on one of her shirt-cuffs, at which point she flips him out of his chair and hangs him out of the window until he apologises.

How, McQueen? How does it work? You take one of my least-favourite items of clothing ever -- the strapless onesie/jumpsuit -- and make it look classy. HOW?

I SWEAR THIS DRESS IS ONE OF THE COSTUMES FROM THE ASGARD SCENES IN THOR.

Mother of Pearl
My opinions of this collection are very mixed. On the one hand we get cool, comfy-looking street style outfits like this...

... but on the other, Mother of Pearl seemed inordinately fond of putting peplums and frills on places where they really should not be. If you're thinking of making a skirt that frills out anywhere lower than the waist? Don't. It looks awful. Especially if it's in a block colour and the rest of the outfit is really plain.

Bibhu Mohapatra
Sad truths: I'm obsessed with this kind of vaguely 1960s-inspired sc-fi minidress, but you so totally know that you wouldn't be able to sit down properly if you were wearing one. Or, like, do anything that isn't related to standing artfully next to something made of chrome in your spaceship-themed nightclub.

Roberto Cavalli
I am never not in favour of clothing that's printed with delicate blue willow porcelein patterns.

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