End of life crisis?

An amazing designer he may be, however in my eyes this is the fashion equivalent of Paris Hilton bringing out her own line... Overrun and saturated. From an advertising perspective, it's pretty unclear to make out whether the label formulates of just accessories, or whether a full spread line of clothing has been produced.

 However if you're lucky enough to wander into a Lagerfeld (brand) store by accident, you'll come across a wilderness of I sorted and somewhat misplaced garments. The mens collection is somewhat reminiscent of the back page in a Boden catalogue. Certainly not to my taste, however the shirts are embossed by a pattern I thought died at the birth of Superdry's 'washbasket shirt'

something that could be best described as a 'Darren Shirt' (inside joke).

Staring out of the window and trying to remember the last time it rained, analysing droplets run down the window creating an ever so subtle spectrum is the best way I can describe the boredom I feel with this brand. Surprisingly Karl Lagerfeld himself didn't have complete control over what was produced, his team, know as the LAGERFELD brand pride themselves on their work and never let us forget it.

Transcending into the womenswear and my heart somewhat lifts, seeing a Chanel-esque touch. Not so much the Lagerfeld era but what I feel could have been an Ode to CoCo, or perhaps Karl had no idea what was being approved, and by so doing purge himself of the ability to design freely for the brand again. Or perhaps I'm getting too psycho-analytical?

An urban feel dominates the womenswear, with a very slight sweep of class... Not much though. Although a damn sight better than the mens it could still be a campaign for a new River Island collection. It's a little odd in my opinion, to start your own brand and not tailor to the consumer, by producing a line you would wear yourself. Forgive me but I can't remember a time when Lagerfeld wore anything but an 8 year-old boys suit. 

An ever long bus journey reminds me of a sobering fact, and that is no matter who you are, investing in your own brand at a career mid point is a sure way to credit ultimate demise when it comes to your image. Never the less, who is to say this won't be the next big thing? Oh wait, me.

3 for £1 on Chanel?

As SS14 is in full swing, the more sporty side of fashion comes into play as Karl Lagerfeld presents Chanel and their AW14 collection. With a more relaxed feel to the clothing this season, I was hoping the elaborate catwalk didn't take all of the shine from the runway. On a positive note, it didn't. Although the pop art themed supermarket seemed to place an uncanny reference to Damien Hirst's 'Pharmacy' installation:- something I distinctively remember experiencing as a child. Or perhaps I'm just the sceptic blogger. Needless to say it has been the focal talking point of pop culture over the past two days.

The clothing seems to reflect what a lot of people feel at the moment, which is a boredom of high maintenance, I am not one of those people. With easy and manageable outfits, you would think this may distract from the on point, avant garde feel of modern day Chanel... It doesn't. Lagerfeld really shows us how to present a collection with a relaxed feel without going down the gym route. I'm sure we can all agree that the 'everyday housewife' look is starting to become a more permanent set with a seasonal refresh, this however was by far the most overt we have seen. The theme bears good reflection in the set, showing that it's a line of clothes that can be worn for mediocre, everyday chores...such as grocery shopping.

The first few lines we see feature generic tendencies of the modern day Chanel look; covetable, dramatic and youthful with a typical Chanel hybrid of dramatic and chic. This feel carried through the entirely of the show, except for the couple that flaunted through the supermarket, he carrying her bag of Chanel purchases. All in all the majority of the collection with emphasis of colour and material follows through with the sporting feel with sudden appearances of a dramatic edge, true to the image of the brand.

I can safely say that if anyone is to successfully and continuously re-invent the image of a brand while raising the bar for fashion, it is Lagerfeld. A true legend in the eyes of most. Although amazing, I'm pretty sure CoCo would turn in her grave at the thought of her classic and respectable brand being bent into a pop art era. I suppose we can't leave that for her to decide.

Images: Lea Colombo/Dazed Digital

www.chanel.com