Molly Bloom knows style

Halston’s back. The label has been trotted out once again with a new designer. Yesterday the collection showed in New York. Today three pieces are for sale online: Two shirt dresses and a very Jerry Hall-esque jersey dress. Take a peak. Selling clothes straight off the runway is unprecedented — usually runway shows give editors and buyers the first peak at what may or may not be made, based on the orders for garments. Production starts after the orders are placed, weeks or months after the shows. Selling the clothes online is a brilliant PR coup for the fledgling Halston.

To answer the eternal question about time travel and where and when to go back, wearing Halston at Studio 54 is high on my list.

Last week Chanel showed the Métiers d’Art collection, a showcase for the Parisian artisans who add the glitz to the garments — beaders, embroiderers, milliners and so on. In the past few years Chanel has acquired many of the ateliers and started a special line to highlight their handiwork. Take a look.

It’s almost Christmas and you know what that means? It’s almost time for the resort collections. Woo-hoo!

(A girl can dream, can’t she?)

It’s all in the construction.

The Wall Street Journal examines couture and mass-market clothes in this short online video. Obviously the quality of the fabric is an issue. The way a sleeve is set can be a tip-off as well as the quality of the buttonholes.
(via FashionAddict)

PS to Vera Wang: I call bullshit on shoddy construction being a design element.

*Third Sin is a category for clothes that I cannot live without but cannot afford.

Behold, the Prada Chevron-Knit Jacket. It is very me. The sleeves are minimal brilliance, the zipper is tough and the black-on-black-ness of the material is more me than me. This beautiful, streamlined wonder works because it’s thoughtfully constructed, beautifully cut and made from the best of the best materials. A down-market version would look like a jacked-up sweatshirt or deflated down coat. This is one of those items that make people understand the quality of true luxury goods.

Ooooooh yes.
(via fashionista)

I’ve written about bras in the past (here and here). Recently a friend quoted me back to me: “Molly Bloom says there is a bra for every outfit, and this one isn’t it.” Bras have come up in conversation twice since then. People have questions about the bras. So for you dear readers, I pass on what I know about bras.

My favorite lingerie store in San Francisco is Alla Prima (they have two locations). They are masters at fitting bras. They’ll measure you and bring you different kinds of cup styles (and most women would benefit from a cup change). Alla Prima is a great place to start your new collection of correctly sized garments; you’ll pay a little more but it will be perfect, and you’ll wear it every day. Look for bargains in favorite brands online once you’ve set your size and style.

A few things about bras:

- The number on your bra is the circumference of your ribcage.
- The letter (or cup size) represents the number of inches fuller your breasts are than your ribcage. Measure the fullest part of your bust for this. If your ribcage measures 32 and your bust is 35, you’re a 32 C.
- Just because it fastens doesn’t mean it fits.
- The center part of your bra between the cups should be flat against your chest.
- Your boobs should not jiggle when you walk. Sorry, guys.
- Get measured every year.
- Bra sizes often change with weight loss or gain. Don’t just go up or down a band size; you may need a different cup size as well.
- Learn which straps, cup style, fabric, etc. are most comfortable and look for more bras with those features.
- Don’t wear a sports bra as an everyday bra. It mushes your boobs into a funny loaf shape and the fabric is usually too heavy to be inconspicuous under nice tops.
- You need to spend some money on your bras. Victoria’s secret is actually that her bras are poorly made and uncomfortable.
- Don’t put them in the dryer. The elasticity will go and the wires will poke through and then you’re just screwed. Hand-washed bras will last the longest.

Jean Paul Gaultier showed his Fall 2007 Couture in Paris today. He’s best known for designing Madonna’s conical brassieres circa 1990 but has been cranking out couture for decades.

Oh-seven couture? Love it. Especially love the lace applied to the faces of some models. And I love that their hair is made to look like a crown. I’ve been seeing a lot of crowns lately, what with the Vivienne Westwood show and all. I love-love the coat pictured above. I’ve been kicking around an idea for a regal evening coat for some years. I was given an antique kimono at Burning Man a few back. I want to take some of the embroidered designs and appliqué them on a sturdy cloak. I’ve recently been thinking about the coat and this couture number is speaking to me. Stay tuned.

The New York Times has a photo series called “The Best Hands In The World.” It features the work rooms of major fashion houses as they prepare garments for the couture shows. There are some familiar sights for me: stay-stitching that needs to be removed, patterns drafted onto silk organza, hand-gathered sewing to create a ruffle.

And I love the Dior sewers in their white smocks.

John Galliano’s latest couture collection for Christian Dior is exactly what couture should be. It has drama and color and outsize proportions. It is serious but knows how to tell a good joke. And he brought back the true supermodels, including Linda Evangelista, the fiercest of the fierce walkers.

Ooooh la la.