From Paris to Moscow ... Chanel Pre-Fall 2009

Could drama sells in the times of recession? If Kaiser Lagerfeld says yes then it should be. Though Paris Fashion Week has officially ended like two months ago, the Ville des Lumières (City of Lights) once again saw fashionistas and fashion journalists thronging back into the city for Chanel’s Paris-Moscou pre-fall 2009 show.

Dressed in the latest autumn/winter garbs, Devotees of both late Mademoiselle Chanel and Karl Lagerfeld braved the brazen early winter to see the latest fashion drama well-staged. Held at the grand Théâtre le Ranelagh, the venue was swathed in elements of gold and red, vividly decorated to mimic the authentic ambience of the grandiose Russian Tsar palace in the old Saint Petersburg.

Taking the plush velvet and mahogany seats at the front row that evening among others were style icons Princess Caroline from Monaco, model-turned-actress Diane Kruger and also French celebrity Clémence Poésy (where’s Mrs. Sarkozy anyway?), just to name a few.

A truly dramatic show to the core, the Paris-Moscou show started with a special presentation of a silent black and white short film. Taking 1910’s and 20’s as the film background, the skit features Coco Chanel in her younger days getting amorous with both Russian and French émigrés. Best of all, the cast is comprised of Lagerfeld’s own friends!

Skip to the real show now. Paying tribute to Russia’s glorious monarchy past, Lagerfeld played with lots of Russian imperial elements in terms of colours, nuances and trimmings. The country’s iconic winter feel is strongly felt via liberal usages of posh fur trims on some of the pieces, not to mention the overzealously dramatic headgears.

Outerwears such as long coats are decadently crafted with swishy classic embroideries using golden threads. Hmm, I wonder why fur and thick materials are used since pre-fall would likely be halfway towards the end of summer and start of fall? Only the Kaiser knows the answer anyway.

While everybody in this part of the world knows very well those furry and fuzzy long coats won’t be much in favour due to the steaming hot climate of ours, then the charming ensembles and elegant dresses might be alluring enough to tempt you to over swipe that platinum plastic of yours.

Predominantly drenched in luscious Russian red and ethereal wintry black, both ensembles and dresses feature cinched waistlines and adorned with shiny wide patent belts. Simple silhouettes featured on dresses allows you to wear it at all occasions, thus means lots of saving for these bad times.

There are also pieces created by Lagerfeld with the iconic Russian peasant looks in mind. Think of tunic with folksy prints and worn with gold leggings, long-sleeved turtleneck straight lame dress with long printed over vest, and those traditional ethnic embroideries in metallic threads. Not to forget those sizzling shoes and optional, the theatrical headgears.

While men’s collections are often produced in limited quantities, the pre-fall garbs for him are just as stunning as for hers, except without all the necessary Chanel dramas applied.

Simple but veritably impressive, Lagerfeld injected the elements of old Russian military sense of style with a bit of rock and roll into the ravishing collection of men’s pea jackets, leather pants, knitted cardigans and sweaters. If the Tsar’s young prince Alexei were still alive, I bet he’ll be the first in line to get them all!

Chanel’s Paris-Moscou Pre-Fall 2009 collection will be available at all Chanel boutiques worldwide at the end of summer next year.

*Photos by Style.com

Chanel – Ground Floor, Suria KLCC, Jalan Ampang, 50088 Kuala Lumpur.