Reminiscing About the Past

Nostalgia, the vice of the aged. What is it about the past the fascinates us so? There is something that can be learned from our past experiences, reminding us of romance, defeat, courage and strength. The curiosity and enthralment or knowing our roots and where our heritage lies can inspire us to see our future differently. Paying respects to heritage can turn out to a remarkable vision for the future, as seen in labels like Belstaff, Burberry &Balenciaga. This season, the British label Belstaff, with new creative director Martin Cooper, has explored the label’s archives to find what made the name so Iconic. This seems to be a theme with Cooper, keeping the same mind set in the past 16 years with Burberry, Cooper made Burberry be remembered as the trailblazers for their iconic trench coats. “I took a very strong point of view - To take back and reclaim what was ours!” says Cooper about the Belstaff name. Going back to their 1930’s designs, Cooper focused on two of Belstaffs most iconic outerwear styles: the Trailmaster (a slim, patch-pocketed, motorcycle jacket) and theJunior TT (a long coat, with straps attached the the legs so it wouldn’t fly away.) “I wanted to take the essence of those garments and amplifly the details in a super rich, super luxury way and then interpret them in a manner that had not been done before.”

Nicolas Ghesquière did some recent digging of his own for inspiration for his upcoming 2013 Resort collection. He discovered that Cristobal Balenciaga actually designed costumes for a ballet in the 1930’s. He translated the purity, flow and grace of the dancers in motion and incorporated a twist of 21st century. Using fabrics like jersey and chiffon georgette, Nicolas actually sealed the fabrics to bonding material to mould the body, allowing us to feel the weightlessness and beauty -an innocently delicate second skin. The skirts are finished off with beautiful ruffles - also bonded so that the skirts can dance away from the body. The palette is overwhelmingly soft and elegant with soft yellows, baby blues and light rosy pinks. Showing us that the past is still as graceful & alive then as it is in the 21st century.