STORY: Luxury brand J. Mendel didn't depart from what it does best - design high-end fashion using superior textiles to create an ethereal look for Fall 2012 at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in New York.
The label's French designer Gilles Mendel took his inspiration for his latest line straight out of the editorial pages of Vogue magazine. He linked his Fall 2012 look with his memories of the legendary Diana Vreeland, the editor who put the magazine on the fashion map.
"I was very inspired by Diana Vreeland, fashion editorial in Vogue, a fashion editorial that she did in Barcelona with Helmut Newton in front of the beautiful architecture of Gaudi," Mendel told Reuters backstage before his show on Wednesday (February 15).
"And it's all about texture and very luxurious materials and the mix of fabrics together that makes this collection very rich."
Born and bred in Paris, designer Gilles Mendel has fashion in his DNA. He is the fifth generation of a family of furriers who served Russian aristocracy. After launching his ready-to-wear business in 2003, Mendel was admitted to the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA). He set up a showroom and studio in
New York, and unveiled his ready-to-wear line during the Fall 2004 runway shows at New York Fashion Week.
For fall 2012 Mendel cloaked Oscar-worthy gowns in elaborate furs. With this elegant look, Mendel hopes to cater to some of the fashion industry's most important customers - the Chinese.
New this season: his handbag collection.
Mendel celebrated his label's expansion into handbags by showing the bags on the runway with his sensuous evening gowns, luxuriously tailored wool and silk trousers, blouses and dresses, and over-the-top furs.
TV personality and fashion commentator Kelly Osbourne, who posed for photographers before the show, forecasted ethereal looks for evening and daywear as the top Fall 2012 trends.
Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in New York will conclude on Thursday (February 16).
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