BALMAIN Spring/Summer 2013 PFW

LAST season Olivier Rousteing managed to make a successful push forward and leap with Balmain, a brand that had become so synonymous in its aesthetic. It was an impressive move from the 27-year-old designer for whom this new season marks his third at the helm of the house.


So it was time to rewind the clocks to when big big shoulders of the triangular and oversized gangster proportion were in and show them off to full effect with tapered high-waisted trousers and accessorise to the Nineties max with a teased single plait and huge hoop earrings.

"I admired how he embraced the exaggerated shoulder wholeheartedly. It is what people loved to begin with after all," noted Vogue's Calgary Avansino. Balmain, it's true, simply is not Balmain without big shoulders. And this was a show that paid homage to the power suit - but we bet you just never thought about owning one in monochrome diamond prints or yellow and black Beetlejuice stripes did you?

When it wasn't the former, it was all black leather mini-skirts, little crop tops (note: this is a trend that is gaining momentum in Paris for next season), and sometime with a jacket over the top too.

There were jewelled-up-to-the-nines creations as well - short and strewn with silverware and textured paisley designs. They were blue and yellow and certainly commanded attention - though at times not necessarily the right kind.

More successful among the collection, though, were the denim pieces - shirts and jackets which were desirable and wearable, something that at times couldn't be said necessarily of everything else.