Hermes: Gender Segregationists on Madison

For the first time, ever, the french luxury brand will soon separate men from women. The retailer will open, in 2009, a four-level, 6,000-square-foot men's-only store at 690 Madison Avenue. The new store will be exactly across the street from the Hermes flagship, at 691 Madison Ave (above).

Resort! Resort! Resort!: Proenza Schouler

In their Resort 2009 collection, Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez, the boys behind Proenza Schouler, we saw a calm, cool experimentation with size and proportion. They used great layered structural linens for day and sultry black satin in their evening looks. What I love about Proenza is their young signature cuts. There is something under-the-radar about them that's exciting and fresh.

Resort! Resort! Resort!: Oscar de la Renta

For Oscar de la Renta Resort 2009 is all about color and cut. The show, which was held on May 14, 2008 in New York, used a variety of colors to show pieces that screamed Upper East Side elegance in a subtle and beautiful way. The show opened with a stunning gold skirt suit, it was Jackie O and Anna Wintour with a bit of Indian royalty. The colors moved from more fall-esque colors to blues and reds to exquisite black poofy evening gowns.Toward the middle of the show, Mr. de la Renta presented a cocktail dress (above) that blew my mind, it was in this blue and red print that was popped with an air of youth and chicness. The cut of the suits, were much like the cuts of his fall show in February, they were modern without losing his quintessential New York class. Mr. de la Renta's pieces were not for every woman, but this was for that classy luxurious working heiress.

Resort! Resort! Resort!: Chanel

It is that time of year again, resort season for the world's top designers. This season is less of a spectacle and, like pre-fall, collections are shown in a smaller more professional environment. Karl Lagerfeld showed his Chanel show in Maimi, Fl. I thought the collection was really hit or miss. The evening and work looks were exquisite, I saw a whole lot of Karl and his signature uniform of black and white suiting. Unfortunately the day and swim looks were a bit old and somewhat tacky. The Chanel menswear was also less than spectacular, at times, there were great looks that featured great knits and denim shorts. But I don't think men are going to sport the plain white T-shirt with an embossed Chanel logo that Karl showed, and especially at Chanel prices.

Costume Institute Flies, and Soars @ The Met.

The Costume Institute at The Metropolitan Museum of Art premiered its' latest exhibit on May 5, 2008. The $7,500-a-head event was titled "Superheroes: Fashion and Fantasy", and was (as always) a who's who of New York society. Vogue Editor-in-Chief, Anna Wintour (pictured above) wore a bizarre but immaculate Chanel Haute Couture gown. George Clooney and Julia Roberts wore Giorgio Armani, and even arrived with the designer. My best dressed would have to be, surprising, Christina Ricci and Zac Posen, that had a certain simplicity and sense of humor I admired.
The Exhibit itself was small and somewhat lackluster. But there were some cool pieces, I especially liked a Hussein Chalayan white dress (also above). The coolest thing at the exhibit was an mannequin that wore a Clark Kent costume and then in the blink of an eye, it was a superman costume, I have no clue how they pulled that off.
"Superheroes: Fashion and Fantasy", which was headed by Mr. Armani and Ms. Wintour, as a gala was stocked full of an ever growing population of stunning fabulosity, the exhibit was bland, but hardly mattered.