Listen, I get it. Everyone from Beyonce to Rihanna has been seen sporting Christophe Decarnin's skin-tight mini dresses, broad-shouldered blazers, embellished jeans, and sexy sky-high footwear. And, much like that other fashion house (cough *Balenciaga* cough) whose pricey duds usually spawn a million more affordable knock-offs, Balmain look-a-likes can pretty much be found at every fast fashion hot spot nowadays for little to nothing.
So, imagine my surprise when I stumbled upon this bedazzled mini on Bebe's e-store. I don't shop at Bebe but its merchandise can be summed up in one word: over-priced. It's one of those labels who aspires to be like a Max Azira but falls totally short instead. Nonetheless, someone inside their bran trust decided to create a replica of a dress from Balmain's Fall '08 collection.
It doesn't look too bad, but it's definitely not worth its $115 price tag. At all. The polyester just simply isn't cutting it and, well, it just looks kind of awful. This just goes to show that not everything in life that is Balmain inspired, relatively cheap, and accessible is good for your wardrobe or skin because I know this piece has to be very itchy. Here's to just hoping Balmain decides to bless us semi-broke fools with a limited edition capsule collection that won't scare my wallet.
If Karl Lagerfeld, Rodarte, and Stella McCartney can, why can't you Mr. Decarnin? Please! Le sigh.
After dropping an amazing dance album and prancing around in front of the paparazzi wearing nothing more than leotards and Alice in Wonderland garb for a little over a year now, Lady Gaga was more than overdue for a cover of Rolling Stone.
However, what the tiny woman didn't deserve -- in no way, shape, or form might I add -- was the honor of looking like a fucking fool for her huge American publishing debut.
When the issue made its way into my mailbox this spring, I was absolutely floored. I couldn't believe that no one in her camp -- either friend or someone from the record label -- tapped her on the shoulder and said, "boo, please don't the bootleg Hussein Chaylan number anymore. You're better than that." Even better, "Gaga, Rihanna is one of your contemporaries. You need to drop the DIY and step it up."
The hair, the lips....it was too much.
No worries, though. It appears the fashion pros have finally decided to aid and abede Miss Gaga as she tries to take over the scene one peroxide wig at a time. Last Friday, V magazine threw up a behind-the-scenes clip of their forthcoming issue with the singer on its cover. While the mini video only acts as a mere teaser, it shows Nicola Formichetti wrapping the blonde in Givenchy and Balmain which should bode well for what the rest of the spread will look like.
Hopefully, Gaga Does High Fashion Shoot: Take Two turns out much better than the initially go around. Fingers crossed.
Much like the studded power pumps, bold-colored super short mini dresses, and embellished jackets with the bold shoulders, we really wanted to snag a pair of ripped denim pants from Christophe Decarnin spring '09 collection for Balmain. But then we looked at our wallets -- our dear busted, disgusted, and totally broken down wallets -- and we knew that unless Decarnin decided to wake up one morning and distribute his pieces to people for free there was no way in the world we'd be walking away with a pair of $1300 jeans from this knockout collection.
Nonetheless, we didn't let our bank accounts deter us from getting the "balmain look." While these American Eagle cropped denim pants are far cry from the bleached number Anna S donned on Balmain's runway, they're cute, much more practical for everyday wear, and might we add only $49.50. So you can buy these jeans without having to dig into your treasured weekly Starbucks stipend.
Dear Carine,
Where should I began?
The June/July issue of French Vogue, with your beautiful country women Leticia Casta and Noemie Lenoir wearing Chanel on the cover, is amazing: the Lindbergh editorial you styled was equally incredible, too.
And your outfit choices lately. Genius.
No one, not even your daughter, held a candle to you at Cannes last week -- wearing those tight-fitting Balmain dresses definitely made you HBIC of the festival .
Keep up the good work.
xox Chic and Untroubled
