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It’s Your Move, New York

In the midst of the recent Paris Fashion Week - Haute Couture (that’s right! Jan. 24 – 28, 2010), I wound up talking to Coco Chanel. Just fooling...of course I didn’t really. But it was one of those days where I picked up my Little Oxford Dictionary of Quotations and found this quote from the French Couturier herself.

“Fashion isn’t made to be canned. Fashion in cans becomes quickly obsolete.”

While there are general trends and road maps to follow every season, one must still have that individual spark – something that makes you look different and unique. It’s all about letting loose and getting creative, because “fashion in cans becomes quickly obsolete” and if everyone walked around wearing the exact same thing every time a new trend popped up, what a nightmare that would be (Yet it still happens – think of the Ugg trend and those generic Hollister hoodies that seem to multiply around you every day). Teens especially sometimes forget that really, fashion isn’t just about wearing the clothes your friends wear; fashion is about expression and creativity.

Possibly the hardest part is prying that word “fashion” off the high fashion catwalk and molding it to fit your actual day-to-day life, all the while making sure that the “I” in fashion is intact. That is, making sure your individuality isn’t completely overrun, but rather, inspired.

Which brings me back to Paris fashion week. During that week, designers displayed their collections and informed the world on what’s in and out for the upcoming seasons.

I was expecting – and quite glad about – spring’s arrival of brighter hues and neutrals. One of my favourite collections was by Chanel’s Karl Lagerfeld. “It's the first time in my whole career I've done a collection without black or navy. There's not one gold button,” Lagerfeld has been quoted as saying. His collection was an inspiration of cream, grey, ivory, and ice-cream palettes. But it gets better. Many designer’s “huh, what recession?” theme entailed sparkles here and various textures there, which boosted my own confidence in being more experimental. Still, you won’t catch me wearing a big-bird meets high fashion statement jacket, à la Diane von Furstenberg. Knee socks and blazers also caught my eye, but those will have to wait until September for me. Meanwhile, statement jewelry (my fave!) is another hot trend with Forever 21 being my go-to place. I’m also waiting to experiment with floral patterns this spring, which is going to take some bravery, but it’s really quite versatile and has been sneaking its way onto everything!

The start of a new year is the perfect time to make a new start with your wardrobe as well, even if it means recycling old pieces and adding new tidbits as the season progresses. All in all though, fashion weeks are great places to start looking for the upcoming season’s inspirations. The next one coming up is New York’s Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week from February 11th to 18th.

It’s your move, New York. Plus, I think the successful Paris fashion week has just said, “Checkmate!”