Life> Photo

Stella McCartney: Gals you'd like to date

(FWD)
Updated: 2007-03-02 15:28

Paris - Leave it to Stella McCartney to send out on her catwalk models wearing clothes that make you want to date them, rather than admire from afar, or shun or simply think, don't they look weird.

A model presents this creation by British designer Stella McCartney for her Autumn/Winter 2007-2008 ready-to-wear fashion collection in Paris March 1, 2007.[Reuters]

It's an unfortunate truism about fashion that way too many designers create collections and catwalk shows using some of the world's pretty girls and then through makeup, inane styling or unlikely and aggressive clothes render them, well, unattractive.

Not Stella: whose spiffy, sexy and frequently well-cut fall 2007 collection used her beautiful casting to its full effect.

This print-free show emphasized cut and silhouette, creating looks that flattered and were never formulaic. From the opening shag wool coat in gray on Daria Werbowy and the Polly Magoo hooded short duffle coats and ponchos to the peak shoulders sloppy cable wool sweaters and blood orange coat dresses the collection was witty and wearable.

The best look was the simplest: a matching felt wool wide sleeved tunic with short pleated skirt on Namibian bewitcher Behati Prinsloo: finely cut worn with a smile it was understated yet sophisticated.

A rockin' soundtrack, excellent casting, the cool art gallery runway and great pacing all smacked of great professionalism.

Not everything worked: a few of the bowed hemmed finale cocktails were out of proportion. But they were blimps in an otherwise fine show that summed up McCartney's considerable strengths as a designer.

This designer has been known to lament the way many begrudge her success, cynics who view her as the lucky progeny of rock royalty. She's been unfairly termed a celebrity designer when in fact she is infinitely more talented than any Gwen or Puffy and is, indeed, a designer of considerable talent as this clever collection clearly pointed out.