This amazing footage from the Burberry FW2011 show in Beijing completely blew my mind away! Of course, other brands including McQueen and Diesel have also been known to include holographic effects in their runway shows before, but Burberry’s presentation was just refreshing and captivating.

And of course, if you haven’t already heard about the amazing Vocaloid technology in Japan, you better do a google search for it! Recently a Vocaloid “live” concert was held, by holographic characters! Check out my fav character Miku and all-time-fav song The World Is Mine, sung LIVE!!!!

Do you have any technologically fashionable things to share?

Will just talk about the collections I actually liked (everything else is basically… bleargh).

#1 spot has to go to… LANVIN
I know, I’m surprised too, because I’m not a Lanvin type of girl and was never a fan, but this collection stunned me. It was just strong pieces, one after the other, and there was a definite statement. There were amazing shapes created even out of minimal fabric and a muted palette, but the whole collection screamed smart, simple, stylish and elegant. The use of fur and nordic elements (which have been common across many other labels this season) was used really cleverly and gave a glamorous twist to the clothes… Well done Elbaz!

Christian Dior
I really adore this collection, what I call “Oliver with a sexy Twist”!
Nothing overdone or too dramatic but shows Galliano’s genius. The colors are absolutely chic and make the clothes come alive, really, especially the dark maroons, browns and faded blues. The jackets were also incredibly well-cut and plaid looked really good. And the make-up is GORGEOUS, i love it so much!

Ann Demeulemeester
So maybe I’m biased because I love red x black, pvc and feathers, and Ann basically delivered it in a package. Nonetheless this has got to be the sleekest collection on the runway this season. It’s just so sleek, sharp and sexy. Enough said.

Alexander McQueen
Last but certainly not least… my favourite designer, McQueen. I still feel very sad to know that he is gone now, but once again I hope that he is now at peace. This is his final collection and he went out with a bang, to say the least. It really displays what a magnificent designer he is. Really… words are inadequate to describe his genius and immense dedication to every detail of his craft.

This is why I love Japanese fashion. A bed of neverending creativity. I see a new, distinct Japanese trend coming up already, more unique, more artistic, and more fashion forward than ever. CANDY brings us some of the freshest ideas from Japanese designers today.

From their 09FW collection… (check their website for lots more)

Latest promotional image… seriously the epitomy of Tokyo cool:

Their shop space is also used for many installations and fashion exhibitions…

I WANT TO GO THERE SO BAD.

Also, not forgetting the lovely Sister, another fabulous indie Japanese fashion house with amazing new talent. Definitely on their way to take the street fashion scene by storm.

To make up for my hiatus, here’s a bit of juicy fashion spam – hopefully it will be a good start to the year
(Credits to popbee for sharing these images)

Diesel Spring 2010 campaign reminds us what really sells…

I am loving Wildfox’s Spring 2010 Lookbook with the theme “You’re a doll”:

Love her or hate her, Lady Gaga is here to stay…

And of course, don’t forget to catch the new SATC2 movie in summer 2010!

The clothes are great of course, there’s a bit of wizardry and madness in them, but I love everything about the video, the whole cyber gothic cult feeling brought to us through the rigid movements of the model, the repetition and symmetry, the fantastic use of eerie, cult-like background music, and the excellent use of the ink as motion graphic effects. One might argue that such an artistic video might not give added value to the fashion but I think this really suits Gareth Pugh’s vision very well. In particular I love the part where the model ‘grows’ legs from the coat, like a beetle. It gives a little touch of nature, of growth, to the mechanical robotic concept so apparent since the first shot.

Also, I’ve been extremely interested in the use of ink/liquids as part of motion graphic videos for some time now. This reel reminds me of a fantastic short clip done by MIL:

And some experimental photography catching ink in motion, by yours truly:

The exhibition was very interesting, using luxury as the key word and vantage point for looking at fashions from the 17th century to contemporary times. The exhibition was divided into three parts. The first section, Ostentation, included displays of dresses from the 1800s taken from various countries, mostly England, Italy and France. Court dresses and weddings gowns as well as men’s suits were all created with elaborate fabrics and garments with painstaking detail, most notably beadwork and applique. As can be imagined, most of the clothing created during that era were handmade, so the amount of labour that must have gone into the dresses must have been incredible. Some of my favourite ones included an ivory-colored dress with swirling patterns created from sewn-on jewel beetle wings.

The Balencianga set and Louis Vuitton coat certainly received the most attention though, probably because they stood out amongst the many court dresses and definitely screamed couture. I do like both pieces very much; the cut and embroidery of the Balencianga jacket is beautiful, and  I ADORE the LV coat because it’s just gorgeous. Interesting how fur has always been associated with luxury and gives a sense of glamour.

We then moved on to the next section Less is More, which was certainly quite a switch. Here, minimalism was the key, and ornamentation was reduced to an absolute minimum while silhouttes and overall shapes were emphasised. Here, the Chanel and Balencianga dresses demonstrated simplicity that met the need for both comfort, function and yet modern sophistication.

The third section, Clothes are free-spirited, was certainly one of my favourites – here, “the intense relationship that is generated between the designer and the wearer”. Pieces from the Commes de Garcons collection by the talented Rei Kawakubo displayed craft, beauty and a new level of fashion as interactive art. The garments, formed from either one large piece or a few seperate pieces, were laid out and photographed as a plan, the result of which appeared as an irregularly-shaped wrapping paper.

Finally, Uniqueness which featured one-off garments by Maison Martin Margiela attempted to ‘represent contemporary concepts of luxury, such as “one-off,” “recyclability,” and “hand-made.” ‘ This took fashion to yet another more artistic level, with pieces created from found objects including bottle caps and poker cards. Particularly impressive was a new wedding dress created from the parts of three cut-up wedding dresses.

Overall a worthy visit. The exhibition will be moving over to Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo (MOT) from Oct 31, 2009, so do check it out if you are in the area!

I was very fortunate to have visited the CHANEL Mobile Art Container in its Hong Kong stopover.

You can now experience the exhibition virtually HERE.

The voice in the background was the guiding voice visitors listened to through headsets given out during the exhibition. The one at the website mixed in different languages so you won’t be able to get an actual picture of the entire tour, but it’s still nice to look at nonetheless.

Also don’t forget to check out the other sections of the website. In particular I like the short film under THE TOUR > HONG KONG > VIDEOS & PHOTOS > PARTY. Very nice film there. I laughed a little when Karl appeared in the tiny gap of light.

I have to say, I am loving everything about this set.

Kate Cusack also has some super cool zipper interpretations that take the form of wristcuffs and other sorts of jewellery. (via hkfashiongeek)

banal chic bizarre

Oh yes, I will be blatant about my biased love for Japanese street fashion. People’s creativity never fail to amaze me. All in a good way, of course. There’s something about this country, its people and its culture that has won my heart and undying love.

All images from the wonderful dropsnap.jp

Here are some of my current favourites…

And YAY for harem pants making the comeback *_* Now that has motivated me more than ever to grab a pair. Mmm.