When I watch a runway show, I like to do things a little bit backward; instead of reading the provided notes before the show begins, I like to view the collection first to see if the impressions I had as a blank slate line up with what the designer had in mind. After all, when these clothes hit stores, they’re not going to come with a five paragraph explanation. In the case of Chadwick Bell Fall 2012, what was promised by the line sheet and what I saw in front of me were one and the same.
Bell described his fall ideal as, “A perfect woman in an imperfect situation. Her look is polished, rich and refined, but she herself is dangerous.” And indeed, the phrase that came to mind when viewing the line of impossibly luxurious knits, furs and highly detailed coats (all topped with what was once a careful, elegant hair style come halfway undone) was “deranged Upper East Side doyenne.” Check out our gallery of the utterly luxurious collection after the jump.
