There once was a time when there was no Celine. Well, I don't mean "no celine", but it was certainly not on anyone's fashion radar. It had a brief spell in the sun when Michael Kors was the creative director, bringing his own brand of playful American sportswear to the mix, but really, Celine has never been the name on everyone's lips. That was until Phoebe Philo, celebrated ex-designer of Chloe who had been on a sabbatical of 2 years to raise a family, rejoined the fashion world at the helm of that forgotten fashion house - Celine. With a resort collection that stunned and excited, then a Spring collection in 2010 that not only captured but redefined the zeitgeist, and then a slew of other successful collections, Philo has been sitting on top of the fashion hierarchy ever since. She has been the most copied designer by the high street - Zara, H&M, COS, even Topshop have all dipped into her designs for their own - she has been the most worn designer on the fashion week circuits, she has been featured in every editorial, every magazine, and suddenly you can see the effects on the street. She took the closets of ordinary, working women and cleared them out until all that was left was a crisp white tee shirt, a khaki a-line skirt, a pair of wide-legged, high waisted pants, a tailored camel blazer to be worn, cape-like, hanging off the shoulders, and a simple box bag. That was it. That was all you needed. If you added a leather tee shirt or a sleeveless trench from her collections, so be it, but you didn't need to really. She reminded us that we had it all, already, ourselves.
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So who can blame her for taking a new direction? After such hype and exaggeration Celine had become something of a mega-brand when Philo had never intended it to be so. She wanted it to be easy, unfussy clothes for women to wear. No dramatics. And suddenly the dramatics were everywhere - in the brand, in the followers, in the cult, in the surroundings. You could see the hints of a change in her resort collection this year. There were splashes of colour and a couple of sensational prints, as well as things like south american-style knitted ponchos that seemed so out of place with the slick urban minimalism of the clothes. This was because they were the pre-cursor for what was to come. These items could have easily fit into her Spring collection this time, because her fall collection was anything but slick and urban. Gone was the rigidity, gone was buttoned up, bridled sexuality, gone was the working woman "let's get it done" mentality. This was looser, more languid, oversized, flowing. Phoebe Philo said after the show, "It's all about freedom, getting away." This is a departure for Philo, but I feel one that she successfully navigated. The Celine woman this time was more individual, more personalised. As Cathy Horyn put it, the collection seemed to stand up straight and speak directly to audiences. "Pay attention", something remarkable is happening.
Was it still minimalism? Undoubtedly. But it was almost like minimalism's day off, weekend clothes for working women (try saying that 5 times fast), a chance for the high-flying to have a break. There were no bells and whistles. There was the occasional bright colour and a couple of prints (the prints were not to my taste, unfortunately, but they were there, and they add something to the collection as a whole), and a couple of knitted tops and poncho-things that were woven by an old lady in paris who has done it her whole life, or something like that. This season it was all about the artisan. Nothing was mass produced or churned out by a machine. You could see Phoebe's hand in everything - the lengthening of hemlines on skirts and tops (tunic tops abounded), the loose, loose, loose flowy pants, the lack of anything fitted at all. That is not to say that things weren't tailored. Philo's strong focus on the cut and the line could be seen in the oversized white tops, reminiscent of the khaki tunics from her first collection, in the deep plunging V dress that was a chic, very sexy option for evening, in the leather tops and skirts that are sure to be a hit with fashion editors the world round. There was a refreshing quality to all the cleanliness of the white looks, balanced out by the practicality of the colours, that hit of tangerine orange, and then the glamour, the luxury of navy (far more exiting than black, no?). Sure, i couldn't see whole looks of this working in the office, but i challenge you to suggest that this was a vision that wouldn't work for summer. In parts of it, it reminded me of The Row's last collection - loose, languid Ashley Olsen style pants with easy strappy gladiator sandals and a belted tunic is a chic and very, very stylish option for the summer work wardrobe. Or weekend wardrobe.
That is, i think, what people are missing. When you view the collection as a whole you can see the beauty in the line - in all that easiness, that un-strapped, that un-constricted fabric flying and really, it must be said billowing everywhere - and the simplicity of the cut. But if you pick it apart you can also see the relaxed luxury of it, too. It was very Hamptons, or Nice, or Majorca - the kind of place wealthy people go on their holidays. I think that mixed in with the rest of a wardrobe these pieces would not only work for summer, but they would also shine. I can already see the first look - sleeveless coat, vest, camisole and loose pants all in a pure, refreshing white - reclining on a lounge chair at the soho house. Or the oriental kimono-style tops over navy blue pants, running from the office to a cocktail party at the Ivy. Like any collection, you're not supposed to wear whole looks by themselves, they are for show, to excited you and prompt you to re-interpret your own clothes. You have to pay attention. The devil is not in the full length shot, the video, the review, it is all in the detail. Come next fashion week, when these clothes will filter onto the backs of editors and assistants, we're all going to love it once more. Because these are real clothes for real people, they don't belong on the runway, they belong in your closet. Some people are finding this collection boring. On the contrary, I find this exciting. Perhaps because I still don't dress this way, not yet, at least. But I am making steps towards it, and as someone who is taking great lengths to pare back her wardrobe and scrub it all clean, this is an exciting prospect. It is a new turn without breeding a new direction, a new look without changing the whole idea, something extra and new to think about.
And, in the world of minimalism, where sometimes, even the best white shirt is only ever, really, a white shirt, that is something worth celebrating.
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