Alexis Mabille (Q2601)
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
Alexis Mabille is a fashion house from FMD.
| Language | Label | Description | Also known as |
|---|---|---|---|
| English | Alexis Mabille |
Alexis Mabille is a fashion house from FMD. |
Statements
2005
creative director
For several seasons now, Alexis Mabille has kept his most lavish creative displays for couture week, preferring instead to show an evening capsule collection during the Paris ready-to-wear shows. With his signature silhouettes and shapes, and his seasonal twists on color and couture-style embellishments, it’s his way of reminding his younger fans that he’s got them covered. This collection is more relaxed than couture, the designer points out, plus these dresses are designed to travel easily wherever his ladies are headed.“Reworking the essentials” is how Mabille described this lineup of 17 dresses, which can be made long or short—and in other colors and materials, for that matter. This season’s theme was spring dew, in sunrise hues of blue, lilac, or the shimmering pink that one might find in a Monet painting.Among Mabille’s signatures—the shirtdress (in taffeta), the bow dress (in silk piqué), a voluminous number inspired by a 19th-century painter’s blouse (also in silk piqué, with Lyon lace)—there was also an evening trench in sparkly silver blue lamé satin with jeweled buttons that reprised the one shown in his fall couture show at the Lido. That one, in fact, was an iteration of a piece Mabille originally designed for his men’s collection, back when he was doing six shows a year.Elsewhere, the designer relied on cut to supply movement, for example on a T-shirt dress with a ribbon belt, or a halter dress in forget-me-not blue georgette striped with micro-sequins. The fluted sleeves that look like lace in these photos are actually cord embroidery on crin, produced by artisans the designer coaxed out of retirement to teach this technique to a new generation. Lace may be one of the trickier materials to treat with a modern touch these days, but Mabille will always be up to the challenge. “I love it,” he said. “I treat it like a second skin, and then add things to it.”
25 September 2024
Alexis Mabille’s couture collection was champagne all the way—in the afternoon, in a bubble bath, and “like Marilyn,” as a section of the soundtrack went. In a piece of meta-theater, the designer staged his outing at the Lido—the iconic Paris venuehe also recently redesigned—making him the first designer to show there and giving him ample room for showmanship. Clients turned up dressed to the nines and every guest had a front row seat for a spectacle complete with a surprise finale by Dita von Teese, swirling all but naked in a martini glass.Logically enough, “Champagne” was the name Mabille chose for a collection high on embellishment, shine and fun. “We weren’t going to give into the ambient morosity,” the designer said backstage before the lights went up on a stage famed for a hydraulic floor fitted with waterworks. “We wanted to be playful and powerful, like when you throw an ice cube into a glass of champagne—it foams, it’s pretty, it’s dazzling, and it’s exciting.”Mabille gamely played on different kinds of personality, moving from the easy swing of a shimmering sky-blue coatdress to an improbable sweep of feathers arced high above the shoulders on a leopard-print sequined gown. A towering, feathered panther headpiece was rustled up from the archives and paired with a black velvet sheath showered in silver sequins. A black “fountain” dress with a plunging neckline, in black jersey with mosaic embroidery, was inspired by the ones freshly reinstated in this Paris landmark.Amid those statements were familiar shapes, like shirt dresses or a cardigan now fully embroidered in silver sequins and trimmed with ivory crepe and jeweled buttons. Not everything convinced: feats of corsetry aside, some of the billowing flourishes—a monumental black bow on one shoulder, for example—felt a bit out there for real life; the occasional pointed peel-down shoulders skewed a tad Malificent. But it was all in good fun. Mabille likes dressing confident characters, and there were plenty of options here to keep those women happy, on or off the red carpet. It was as strong a showing as the designer has made in recent memory, and as effervescent as the buckets of bubbly served at every table.
26 June 2024
By calling his fall collection “Society,” Alexis Mabille said he was giving a nod to today’s café society, one that travels the world constantly and might at any minute be confronted with an invitation to a gala or last-minute charity benefit. That customer needs a dress in her back pocket, so to speak, which is where Mabille’s evening capsule comes in.Picking up on details from certain couture numbers, the designer here presented eveningwear that he described as sartorial BFFs, for example a gown in double-faced stretch satin that’s “more sportswear, even if it’s not sportswear at all.” The idea, he said, is to bring a little freshness and spontaneity to dressing up. In lieu of pre-intensive corsetry, for example, he finds it more modern to use luxe materials like radzimir, silk piqué or satin for easygoing one-and-dones, like his signature shirtdresses, a little black A-line dress fastened simply with two ties in the back, or a simple evening sheath with an asymmetrical neckline, in black crêpe.The lineup included some new additions to Mabille’s usual palette, for example a strapless sheath dress with a draped décolleté in a rich, warm shade of brick, which he also used for a long shirtdress with diamanté buttons that might be worn either belted or open, like an evening coat. Another twist was his use of passementerie, for example as a choker that somehow managed to skew couture and tattoo at the same time. That little accessory was done by the same atelier that used to work with Yves Saint Laurent in the 1980s, the designer explained. He also worked with them to create a belt informed by the frogging that was all the rage in Napoleon’s time. That Mabille, with his arsenal of culture, keeps finding ways to keep such crafts relevant—and in an increasingly crowded field—puts him in a class of his own.
2 March 2024
Most of the time, getting dressed is the culmination of a private interaction between a woman and her mirror. That ritual of self-care—and, one hopes, of self-love—is what Alexis Mabille said he wanted to capture with his new couture collection.Mirror, Mirror, as he named the show, was a reflection not only on what to actually wear, but the intimacy of the act of putting on makeup: choosing this or that blush, applying a sweep of eyeliner or lip color, defining both individual features and a mood of the day. The concept is universal, but the details vary infinitely depending on the person and place. Mabille addressed the theme specifically on two satin jersey sheaths, one featuring a Marilyn mouth and the other with a Cleopatra eye, but overall he evoked a spectrum of possibilities with a soft touch because, after all, summer is about lightness.The show opened with pearly, powdery hues of white, ivory, porcelain, and blush, moving toward deeper tones of nude as the show progressed. In addition to addressing diverse complexions, the designer aimed to incorporate various body types, illustrating his range with, on one hand, the transparency of lace, which looked fresh on a bralette and skirt ensemble, and, on the other, womanly styles that would suit most bodies on any occasion. Familiar signatures reprised here included a bustier gown in rice-powder silk piqué and a smattering of shirt dresses, for example in chocolate casimir or with batwing sleeves. Being well-versed in Hollywood glamour, he also offered up a few befeathered ideas, notably a silk crêpe peignoir style in a stunning (and universally flattering) shade of dark gold.Though the show cast a wide net, it was also one of Mabille's strongest outings in recent seasons. Backstage, the designer declined to play favorites. “I’d like to wear them all if I were a woman,” he quipped. The designer has a loyal base of clients; whatever their color, age, or shape, they will find things they’d like to wear here, too.
25 January 2024
Alexis Mabille presented a capsule of eveningwear in a mirrored gallery in a Paris passage. Set up as an intimate salon de couture, it was a charming frame for the designer’s robes de soirée. Called Evening Essentials, it was a concise occasion wardrobe that Mabille’s high-flying, party-loving clientele will surely love.“It keeps an ésprit couture, but it has the ease and sleek of prêt-à-porter,” he said. Mabille is a designer with a natural understanding of French chic, which he treats with both respect and a sense of humor. Here, he softened the formality of couture eveningwear with a modern, uncomplicated twist that will appeal to his younger fans. Pieces looked elegant but effortless and versatile at the same time: a billowy chemise dress in pale pink taffeta had an ample back (à la Watteau). It looked both entrance-making and comfortable, and it could also be worn as an opera coat. On the same note, an emerald-green caftan in matte and shiny liquid satin could be cinched at the waist with a sash or worn loose, flattering different body types.Other more form-fitting options, such as a slip dress in red chantilly lace or a sinuous dusty pink number worn under a matching embroidered bolero, had an ease about them which didn’t detract from their “va-va-voom effect,” as Mabille called it. While he likes a bit of drama, there was nothing flashy or overtly bodycon in the collection—a rather décontracté way of approaching eveningwear. Plays of bows, trompe-l’oeils and plissé details introduced a bit of frivolity. Yet in Mabille’s world, the French flair for flirtatiousness goes hand in hand with easy, nonchalant chic.
29 September 2023
Alexis Mabille called his couture collection “Mondaines,” a French word for charming social butterflies with a penchant for high-flying lifestyles, and for the flirty nocturnal activities that go with it. It can be loosely translated into “socialites,” but the French give the word a slightly naughtier undertone.Nan Kempner, Bianca Jagger, Nico were the “Divine Mondaines” Mabille referenced—women coming from rather differentmilieuxsharing “a similar sense of style and charisma, a zest for lifetrès naturel, much like my friends or my clients do. This collection is rooted in real life,” he said backstage.The défilé was held at Christie’s headquarters, whose white-walled rooms felt like a modern rendition of a classic salon de couture—a format a few designers are going back to this season. It nicely framed a collection that pivoted on the slender silhouettes of today, très à la mode. Mabille dug into his archives and dusted off his repertoire of masculine tuxedos, updated here in cropped hourglassy versions; the volumes of hisrobes papillonwere far less billowy than usual; the flou construction of draped chiffon dresses was reinterpreted with toned-down flamboyance and a neat approach. A standout in this direction was a series of elongated column dresses in black crêpe cut close to the body, with plays of asymmetries revealing bare legs or framing the neckline for sensuality. Sparingly embellished, their lithe, svelte allure felt right for today.
4 July 2023
Just a few weeks ago, Alexis Mabille sent out a rainbow of a couture show that pretty much had something for every taste and type. For fall he distilled that concept into about 20 looks that nodded to couture inspirations, colors and cuts, but were made for a clientele that doesn’t necessarily have the budget—never mind the patience with fittings—to shop that way.“Whenever I compose a couture collection, I always set some ideas aside for ready-to-wear,” the designer explained. At first, he envisioned every look here as if it were white, picturing “rainbow drops” in his mind’s eye to fill out the color story. “Some styles might appear classic in one color, but when you make it fluorescent yellow it becomes something else entirely,” Mabille said. “Color is like therapy for me, and I wanted to use it for winter because, when you think about it, color doesn’t belong to the seasons.”Evening, for example, is no longer about donning discreet dark hues. It might be about apple green. And it’s definitely not about diamonds and perfect coifs, at least for the younger set, which prefers galaxy hair, chunky footwear, and night-by-day. Working with that ambivalence, and by extension a whole array of women and shapes such as “cloud” dresses in coral satin organza, is where Mabille currently finds the most joy. That’s because focusing on movement lets him forget about silhouette and focus instead on “exploding volumes” and playing with cuts. To wit, a fluorescent yellow number made from 18 meters of silk was the designer’s tribute to Pina Bausch. “You could kick your heels to the sky and there would still be this cascade of yellow. It’s self-accepting and fun,” he said.
2 March 2023
Anyone even passingly familiar with Alexis Mabille’s work—be it fashion or the interiors he’s dreamed up for chic watering holes from Paris to LA—knows that he’s obsessed with dramatic colors. One of his latest projects, redoing the legendary Lido cabaret on the Champs-Elysées, has plunged him straight into the glamour, sparkle ,and history of that celebrated spot, so it’s perhaps not surprising that with this couture collection the designer just went ahead and embraced a rainbow.“It’s like a therapy, a symbol of freedom, happiness, and playfulness,” Mabille said backstage before the show. He even threw in some period references for fun. Though the collection’s title, Color Addict, speaks for itself; Felix da Housecat’s “Money, Success, Fame, Glamour” drove the point home.The designer said he wanted to open with gold half-tones because they can work as well by day as by night. A long beige-gold mesh dress with an asymmetrical neckline, tonal embroidered belt, and a dramatic drape from hem up to shoulder was followed by a draped sheath in burnished lamé whose midsection was hand-embroidered with the profiles of two lovers. That was an homage to the artist, illustrator, and costume and set designer Erté, who drew Lido dancers in his day and worked on theater productions there. Elsewhere, a quasi-cosmic homage to the artist Jean Lurçat appeared as a sequined bodice on a one-shouldered dress in Danube blue crepe, and later on a fuchsia bustier dress-slash-cape, flourishes the designer called “a bit rock and roll.”To close the show, a backless sheath in embroidered organza seemed to bring all these clothes of many colors together like a kaleidoscope. Mabille lights up when he describes “painting all different types of women” (and he loves them all!) or striving to express the texture of color through design. That’s why—to his credit—he kept most of these silhouettes simpler than he has in the past. And that’s also why, no matter a client’s shape or favorite kind of silhouette—tailored, flou, long, short, deconstructed, fluid, draped, pleated, “high drama,” nearly naked—there’s something here that will speak to her.
24 January 2023
Drawing on couture to create a ready-to-wear capsule whose colors, lengths, and flourishes can be adapted on request has proved a winning strategy for Alexis Mabille. And since he’s had to turn down clients unwilling to wait for couture pieces, doing things this way gives everyone a luxurious plan B.For spring, he focused on nineteen evening looks that would be “like a cool and effortless wardrobe, with a relaxed, younger twist,” he explained, standing amid the mannequins in his boutique-showroom-atelier in the Galerie Vivienne. With clients — particularly younger ones — going all-out to dress up in London, New York, and beyond, he wants to make sure they can do it with the same ease as throwing on a t-shirt (even if that t-shirt is in fact, a body-con dress). To that end, a couple of long dresses in merino jersey were fancied up with lace or floral brocade.Lace also took a place of pride, for example, on a white ottoman blouse with a yoke of Lyon lace sourced, poignantly, from a heritage supplier that floundered during the pandemic. It was paired with a long, wrap skirt in matte gold lamé and a sequined belt. An otherwise minimalist white bustier dress with a lace-trimmed ruffled neckline and hem might suit a bohemian-lite bride, and an aquamarine crepe t-shirt dress encrusted with lace from knee to floor nodded to the current trend for transparent skirts without giving anything away.Tried-and-true silhouettes also returned in an array of deep copper hues. Among these were a lamé shirt dress cinched with a satin belt, a long bustier dress in chestnut crepe with the designer’s signature bow as sleeves, and a kimono dress. Hardly groundbreaking, but then again that’s not what Mabille’s base is after.
5 October 2022
The French use an interesting expression—s’assumer—to describe the attitude of taking responsibility and being unapologetic about the choices one makes. “Do you think I’m a diva? Then okay, I’m a diva!” enthused Alexis Mabille, reprising Aretha Franklin’s quote as the headline of his couture collection. “In life it’s just a matter ofs’assumer!” he remarked.Diva par excellence Dita Von Teese graced the front row, applauding Mabille’s creations, which spanned a rather varied repertoire. “I didn’t want the collection to be coherent but embracing many different directions, like on a red carpet,” he mused. Actually, incoherence was in no shortage, but, as Mabille underlined, it wasassumé.The designer touched on many couture archetypes:robe bulleswith short taffeta shifts were enveloped in round-shaped capes attached to the hem as cocoons; sinuous strapless numbersà la femme fleurin luscious velvet had satin petals sprouting from the décolletage; glamourous caftans in densecrêpe marocainsported fluid plays on draping. Asmokingmade an inevitabile appearance, obviously worn sans trousers on bare legs, a big bow on the shoulder trailing all the way to the floor. And a couture version of the masculine white shirt was cut generously in billowy gazar and given a sexy twist paired with straight-leg pants in see-through black lace.Silhouettes and volumes were as individual as the characters Mabille wanted to portray, running the gamut from the tight fitting to the prodigious, from tailored toflou, from lingerie to sport. “Divas are capricious creatures,” he said. “It’s part of their charm. If a woman feels like being capricious, so what?Il faut s’assumer.”
5 July 2022
On Tuesday at the Salle Pleyel symphony hall, Alexis Mabille made a case for “carnal Couture.”“It’s all about desire,” the designer explained backstage before showing a concise lineup of 25 looks, most of them in nude tones with plays on texture, from tattoo-like lace to showers of tiny crystals or matte and shiny paillettes. “It traces the body almost like a drop of perfume or a hint of makeup,” he offered.Transparency combined with elements of lingerie and designer’s signatures—notably bows and shirting, stretched out and turned every which way— to form the through line of a collection that opened with a lace number worn off the shoulder with the ease of a t-shirt. Further along, a scarf dress developed with a Lyon-based fabric maker in hand-painted black dévoré velvet reprised Paris’s most celebrated monuments. It, too, had the offhandedness of a t-shirt.As the designer noted, “it’s almost like, OK yes it’s couture but who cares? You live in it, you party in it, it’s wearable.”More elaborate constructions included dresses in stretch mesh with strass, a catsuit in Chantilly lace, and a top made of 1,500 individually stitched butterflies. A bustier appeared in re-embroidered Lyon lace; a backless sheath dress in crystal diamond mesh had satin bows stacked down the front like vertebrae running from chin to toe.The finale came in the form of a bow cape in black casimir and beige satin fully embroidered with paillettes, worn over a jumpsuit in embroidered tulle. While it had some competition, that may have been the lineup’s most contrived piece. But wrapping a woman up in a bow is Mabille’s home turf—we’ll be curious to see which fearless client is bold enough to take it on.
26 January 2022
Alexis Mabille has a booming sideline in interior decor—to wit, his festive, maximalist reboot of Le Boeuf sur le Toit, or the Saint Tropez edition of Cipriani (soon to be followed by LA). He juggles constantly, and says it’s a godsend that he doesn’t need a lot of sleep.For his Spring outing, Mabille wanted to take his short capsule of 16 evening looks straight to the dance floor, hence the collection’s title “Dance Machine.” It was filmed at the Paris boîte Le Silencio.“I really wanted to portray life and movement,” the designer offered during a showroom tour of a lineup that alternated between willowy flou and structured dresses in crepe or radzimir.A long shirt dress in white radzimir, for example, with inserts of Lyon lace was a deliberate mash-up between high fashion and the ease of a T-shirt. Mabille calls the mindset “coolitude,” and he whipped up a few crystal-studded satin baseball caps to underscore that point.In terms of color, the designer kept it mostly neutral, in shades of sand, ivory, chestnut, and black, with the occasional shot of saturated hues, for example in a long, emerald wrap dress with crystal buttons that channeled the French “smoking” or a forest green cape-dress.Each look is like a playground, the designer said: “The whole concept of the capsule is to address plurality and multiple styles of wear.” He also made a point of sticking to pieces that can easily be adapted to individual tastes and lifestyles—short in California, long in England, for example. A dress in platinum crêpe with slit shoulders was cut along an 'X' line to be universally flattering, he added.Mabille is a keen observer of nightlife. With a new generation coming of age, dressing for evening is taking a new twist, he notes, so he tries to keep his proposition as flexible as possible. It will be interesting to see how his young clientele bends this lineup to their reality. It is also entirely possible that Mabille—a man of broad culture and a talented colorist—will eventually have to choose between two worlds.
3 October 2021
Alexis Mabille hinted at the iconography of the femme fleur in his couture collection—a reference that could sound a bit trite and cliché today, as women don’t live lives of perfection, botanical or otherwise. But in the French couture, dreaming still reigns supreme. “I was actually thinking about the beauty of blooming again after the hardships we’ve been through,” he said on a Zoom call from his atelier. “Under the circumstances, women haven’t been given the chance of enjoying glamour and looking their most sensational selves. I was thinking of a spirit of renaissance, of blooming again to a joyful life.”Mabille said that for him couture is a space of experimentation, a sort of playground where he can indulge his creativity. “Couture isn’t only a dream, but the panache of savoir faire which gives you the tools to go further, to master detailings and fabrications, giving shape to incredible architectural volumes,” he said. “As a créateur, in couture you can give yourself the pleasure of being selfish, as you aren’t burdened by marketing worries. The more exceptional a piece is, the more chances it has that a client will fall in love with it. Couture is a rather emotional experience—obviously, if you have the means to afford these emotions.”Mabille’s idea of the femme fleur was translated quite literally, yet beautifully, in a series of sculptural silhouettes, including an empire-waisted gown featuring flower bouquets blooming on its décolletage and a golden lurex tuxedo with a hood in the shape of a rosebud. Elsewhere, pouf sleeves were filled like crystal vases with silicone tulips. “They look and feel so real to the touch, it’s almost disturbing,” he joked.The designer’s “borderline sense of color,” as he called it, was let loose in a series of spectacular millefeuille tulle capes. Gradient-hued in tones of amaryllis red, wisteria, and Pierre de Ronsard pink, they indeed looked like psychedelic, crazy blooms. “I wanted a flattering feel of sensuality, excitement, fun,” said Mabille. “Couture for me has to exude anésprit ludique.”
6 July 2021
Alexis Mabille believes that once all this is behind us, Paris will be one massive party.When that happens, chances are the scene will be raging at Le Boeuf sur le Toit, the new reboot of a legendary watering hole frequented during the interwar years byLe Tout-Paris,including Jean Cocteau, Josephine Baker, Max Ernst, Gabrielle Chanel, and Christian Dior. Redecorated in the spirit of the Années Folles by Mabille himself, it’s expected to reopen in the fall but gets an advance preview here, as the setting for his look book.Mabille fills out the scene with reworked iterations of his classics, for example a strapless gown in chestnut radzimir with diamanté cuff link–studded shirtsleeves wrapping the bust. A highlight in midnight blue and gold reprises in brocade a motif borrowed from an 18th-century aesthetic movement known as “Les Bizarres.” Mabille mounted the dress with the fabric inside out and added a lacy gold yoke to make it look more modern, and it worked. The designer also favored silk piqué for its structure and lightness, for example in a gold bustier gown, a corolla tuxedo dress, or a sapphire dress with a shirt collar, stretch bodice, and full skirt, which he calls not a shirtdress but a “sock dress.” A number in blue dévoré velvet reedited from a ’70s floral motif had the ease of a T-shirt, yet neatly channeled decadent Art Deco slink.Over the past several seasons, Mabille has developed his business by personalizing his designs for various retailers such as Harrods, so this 16-look outing is just a hint of what will eventually materialize on shop floors—and perhaps dance floors—from Paris and London to Los Angeles and Seoul, South Korea.
8 March 2021
At a time when the world craves comfort—even and especially when it comes to dressing up—Alexis Mabille strived to deliver ease, fusing movement-friendly fabrics with cinematic influences, structure, and colors, like chartreuse and a coral known as coq-de-roche gleaned from one of his favorite periods, the Second Empire. That he named the collection Voluptas, after the daughter of Psyche and Eros, speaks for itself.Take, for example, the smoking, which the designer transposed into a white scarf-blouse in chiffon and satin over black crepe trousers, or a long black dress with a stylized heart neckline. “It’s flou, and at the same time built for a power woman,” the designer offered during a showroom visit. The theatrical side of the Second Empire also came through on a long midnight blue sheath embroidered with arabesques in three shades of gold, to enhance the impression of relief. A fully sequined midnight blue trench came in curve-skimming jersey. Elsewhere, the skirt of an evening ensemble featured a batwing sleeve top in changeant gray taffeta over a skirt with a mirage flower print in three layers of crystal-flecked tulle; their gradient shades created a blurry watercolor effect.The designer also has a longstanding fascination with the American costume designer Adrian. A few negligée-inspired numbers, like one in gold princess crepe with bare shoulders, or a long shirt dress in pleated gold lamé with a mesh yoke, were created with Hollywood’s golden era in mind, for clients inclined to lounge like Garbo. Elsewhere, a long bustier dress in pearlescent fishnet was made of technical material cribbed from the sports world. Some dresses were created entirely without seams, for example a spare, fully sequined dress in gunmetal gray, or a long number in white Lyon lace, stitched together using the cordonnet technique. Simple though many pieces may have appeared, they belie untold hours of work, the designer said. “It’s about achieving harmony, but in the most natural way possible.”
28 January 2021
Over the past several seasons, Alexis Mabille has reigned in his focus. For spring, the designer presented a lineup of eveningwear options that transposes his couture sensibility to the flexibility – and softer prices – of ready-to-wear. That strategy also grants him the freedom to play with proportion, length, and embellishments as he goes along, ensuring that his customer will never come across the same look in LA as Singapore, Paris or London.“It’s like circling back to a different era, when not everything was the same all over the world,” he said during a visit to his boutique in the historic Galerie Vivienne.In just fifteen or so options, the designer ticked several boxes, from perennial black gowns —with a pilgrim yolk or a lace-trimmed bib or white lace inserts — to pleated numbers in saturated colors, for example, a wraparound skirt in yellow satin, or a spare strap dress in pleated fuchsia silk, topped with a sleeveless bolero made of vintage flowers leftover from a full-length coat of seasons past. Similarly, he offered a black vest with scrollwork as an easy update piece. The sequined sneakers in these photos are not just showpieces, and neatly encapsulated the attitude.Arguably the most charming piece was a gown the designer made from a textured brocade showered with flowers, a fabric he developed especially to reprise all the colors in this collection. A dress made from that would make a statement even without any further embellishment.
1 October 2020
If we have come to accept that this couture week is playing out online in the absence of shows, showroom visits are still taking place when possible. And there’s no question the difference this makes. During confinement in Paris, Alexis Mabille and his team were able to produce 26 creations, which were on display in his Galerie Vivienne space ahead of his video reveal today. An up close view of the embroideries that nodded to the abstract motifs of tapestry artist Jean Lurçat were evidence of the handwork that never quite translates through a screen.Mabille noted how he wanted to convey “Attitude” (yes, with a capitalA) throughout this lineup—signifying both the personality of the dresses in addition to his outlook. About the former: “Things didn’t need to relate to each other,” he said. “It’s more like a conversation between different women.” As someone who loves themed collections, Mabille seemed to finally realize they can feel too forced. Instead, the variation felt more conducive to the spectrum of his clients: evening dresses that delivered high drama through constructed silhouettes along with stylized caftans in premium stretch jersey. “It’s about coolitude and comfort,” he explained.His other expression of Attitude had to do with staying positive, given both the state of the world and the constraints this imposed upon him. Faced with the same fabric ordering challenges as other houses these past few months, Mabille sourced from his own supply and let this inform the designs rather than developing everything from sketches. He had all the decorations—the passementerie buttons, beads, and dimensional flowers that were actually dyed feathers—on hand too. Unlike some designers who have been experimenting for several seasons with a more resourceful approach to couture, Mabille entered into this way of thinking and working inadvertently. It will be interesting to see whether he opts to explore this further in future collections.In the meantime, clients will likely appreciate this season’s vivid color statement—whether a swingy backward blazer dress in a saturated shade of pink or a gown with a precisely scalloped neckline in emerald green. A ball gown with winglike shoulder detailing looked particularly triumphant in deep purple.And yet, at a moment when galas and red carpets don’t appear to be resuming anytime soon, one wonders where women will be wearing these looks.
Mabille suggested that clients at the couture level will always have a desire to dress up. Fair enough. The striped and tasseled blouse shown with lace-encrusted pants could be worn to host a dinner party for those who aren’t in full lockdown. For Mabille, keeping calm and carrying on was paramount. “I didn’t want to fall into darkness,” he said. “Even if things were complicated, I had a great team and we continue to have clients who stay loyal to us.”
7 July 2020
Dita Von Teese opened Alexis Mabille’s couture show today, slowly descending from a grand staircase at Sotheby’s Paris headquarters, which was transformed for the occasion into a chic salon. Dressed glamorously—and rather demurely by her standards—in a shimmering sequined tuxedo, she was the only black swan in a défilé populated by white-clad creatures.Mabille called it Carte Blanche. “I had a feel for purity freed from color; it was almost as if working on the toile during anessayage,” he explained, referring to the white-canvas patterns that seamstresses usually make to test the shape of a dress. White gave him a sort of clean slate to highlight every dress’s design and structure. He played the full couture repertoire: the mastery of draping and cutting; the exquisiteness of details; the layering of featherlight textures in different nuances of white—fromcrème fraîcheto optical. It was a sort of virtuoso exercise on the very Parisianésprit de couture.Every look was rather individual, as is customary in many collections today. What made the show cohesive, beyond the choice of white as the non-color, was Mabille’s very flirty, seductive approach. “I was inspired by the divine Jacqueline de Ribes,” he explained. One of the great society ladies, the viscountess is still the epitome of allure and charisma. Her aristocratic profile and fabulous fashion sense has graced more designer mood boards than can be counted.A fierce sense of individuality is a rather French attribute, so the designer riffed on it rather effortlessly in the collection, working on varied silhouettes for his many clients. “They all possess what I call‘l’intelligence du look’(the cleverness of the look),” he explained. “They never wear a look the first-degree way; they always add their own personal twist.” His women are obviously fond of real jewels (“They don’t do costume jewelry,” he underlined); and Sotheby’s was gracious enough to lend fabulous vintage jewelry from its upcoming April auction to be worn in the show. The jewels accessorized layered laces veiled with sensuous mousseline, and the many corseted numbers that the designer described as “slightly bondage-y, but romantic and comfortable.”Well, comfort wasn’t the first thing that came to mind when a model twirled on the catwalk wearing a fitted bustier dress shrouded in anuageof tulle and lace.
And even if an all-white collection immediately evokes a rather obvious bridal approach, who would walk the aisle dressed in a trompe l’oeil asymmetrical sheath, kept in place only by a flirty bow that left almost half the body completely exposed? Well, it certainly wouldn’t be the choice for a first-degree bride. Since individuality today is key, nothing is impossible.
21 January 2020
Ever since Alexis Mabille shifted his ready-to-wear strategy by proposing his dressier looks during the pre-collections and dialing down the drama for the main seasons, he seems to have found the focus that eluded him for some time. This latest offering consists of 18 outfits that speak to a rarefied lifestyle in Saint-Tropez, Miami, and California—from terrace lunches to gala soirées. Certainly, for many of us, a trench coat–inspired full skirt or a fitted gown with sprays of plumetis hardly qualifies as everyday attire. But Mabille knows his clients, and knows to leave the denim and streetwear to others. What factors into his designs are considerations of a privileged sort: whether a maxi skirt will fold up into a suitcase (instead of needing to be sent by airmail) and how to give a mermaid gown a fun new twist (make it in a stretchy brocade used for swimsuits).The designer says he often works with retailers, both physical boutiques and online, to modify the pieces precisely to their requests. But he also conceives many pieces as multifunctional so that his well-heeled women can style them as they wish—see the elongated perfecto that does double duty as a dress and a dress with a removable striped plastron. And then there were pieces such as a shirtdress bordered in beautiful broderie anglaise that will require no effort aside from the right shoe.When Mabille talks about his materials and silhouettes, he uses the language of an old guard couturier, which counts for something today when so many designers are more proficient as stylists. Yet he also understands the power of Instagram bait, and revived his kissing cat dress for its second life within this collection. Showing it in white instead of the original black, he pointed out its playful potential as a bridal dress. Presumably, the partner would be a cat person too.
30 September 2019
Alexis Mabille opted out of a runway show this season, presenting his couture collection in the gilded salons of the Fondation Dosne-Thiers. “I wanted to get back to the very essence of couture, which is about a personal relationship between the designer and the client,” he explained. Indeed. Unlike ready-to-wear, buying a couture dress is a truly unique experience, tailor-made according not only to the customer’s body type but also her special requirements. More often than not, the client in question has stellar spending power and a lifestyle to match, which makes exclusivity (and dedication to her whims and wishes) almost a prerequisite. Tellingly, this collection was called Tête-à-Tête.The dresses, exposed on mannequins, were almost like a series of diverse characters: the Frivolous, the Playful, the Wild, the Thoughtful. There was something for every Mabille-loving woman, a variety of shapes and silhouettes encompassing a vast spectrum of body types (and a smaller spectrum of bank accounts). Elongated, sleek, mermaid-like bustier sheaths, lavishly embroidered with pearls and silver threads, alternated with theatrical, roomy, ample ruffled capes in dramatic black faille. Sexy corseted bodysuits and see-through black lace catsuits that could make a Playboy Bunny blush contrasted with demure, Parisian-bourgeois ensembles of silk pleated skirts paired with white lace high-collar blouses. What could possibly look good on a romantic femme bonbon? Obviously, an ethereal cloud of dusty pink tulle whipped up merengue-like into tiered concoctions. And what about an intellectual prima donna who has a penchant for architectural shapes and isn’t afraid of grand gestures? Voilà! A long wrap dress, not too revealing, but magnificent in its white splendor, with a wide collar for added drama.But beyond the very of-the-moment, diverse offering, the thing all the looks had in common was not only the exquisite, sumptuous execution required from an experienced couturier but also the panache and youthful esprit the witty Mabille infused the collection with: No matter the body type, a joyful sense of glamour always feels uplifting.
2 July 2019
Alexis Mabille continues to frame his Resort offering as an eveningwear capsule, making the most of his penchant for panache. With this latest reprise, he considered all manner of preference, wearer, and occasion—youthful shirtdresses, formal coatdresses, wedding party dresses, corporate cocktail dresses—even if he didn’t label them as such. He landed on such an array of pink and peach tones after noticing the nuance of Picasso’s Rose Period paintings. But of course, pink is as much an Alexis Mabille signature as the bow (spot them seamlessly placed into the cap sleeves of a ’30s nightdress or more dramatically projecting from the neck of a dressy blouse).Alongside thoughtful arrangements of broderie anglaise (the dimensional waves of it on a classic shirt being quite lovely) there were frothy sprays of birdcage netting and tulle blanketed in cherry blossom embroidery. There were also some interesting optional flourishes: a fringed belt or scarf that can be unbuttoned and detached for a more streamlined look. Other than the varsity jacket striped with Lurex that belonged in another collection, this lineup was reliably feminine, its timeless styles spanning soft to strong.Mabille is never not thinking like a couturier whose chief objective is to make clothes that fit flawlessly, which explains why he gets excited about using a figure-flattering silk faille or perfecting a dress whose cape covers the upper arms but can also be swept back in cinematic style. “We can cheat here and there,” he said with an encouraging smile.
25 June 2019
With Alexis Mabille’s Spring couture collection still fresh in the mind, his Fall ready-to-wear lineup struck a similar chord: colorful and fabulous. Aside from fabric substitutions and a little less va-va-voom volume, this lineup reaffirmed his longtime love of statuesque sensuality. Dresses ornamented with his signature bows came in pleasingly lightweight faille; a trompe l’oeil shirt and skirt dress came with a removable basque that could be worn as a ruffled collar; fluid, confident looks came with tone-on-tone lace capes that swooped around the back; and malachite green became a surprisingly alluring hue. Some pieces were multipurpose: a hybrid hoodie dress in candy floss pink could be unzipped and worn as a top layer, just as an underpinning in floral tulle could be styled under several different looks. Most of the fastenings shone bright like diamanté.Whether women end up wearing these designs for weddings, fundraisers, or other special occasions, they are likely to be traveling, noted Mabille. Hence, for all the drama signaled in his silhouettes, most were constructed to be relatively packable. He also suggested that, these days, his market largely consists of clients outside France who seek a recognizably Parisian touch. The lookbook images feature actress Audrey Marnay against a backdrop of fabric rolls in Mabille’s atelier. He appears in certain shots, too; it turns out the idea came from a charming black-and-white photo of Jacques Fath during a fitting with model Bettina from 1949. Mabille upholds this same couturier spirit no matter how his contemporaries evolve. Like it or not, he does this well.
3 March 2019
A packed schedule often necessitates visiting a designer backstage before the show instead of after. The upshot is that this spoils the surprise. Such was the case at Alexis Mabille, where dresses in fuchsia lace, chartreuse satin, and a gleaming turquoise radzimir silk were revealed to the crowd as a gradual buildup that began in black.Calling the collection Rainbow Splash, the designer was intrepid in his matchup of shades and silhouettes. “Every color has its own energy,” he said. Accordingly, he moved through different moods as well: mature yet modern from a deep blue spencer jacket and gown skirt; ingenue and party ready from a handkerchief frock in lipstick pink encircled in a spray of tulle. Gold may not qualify as a color; yet this grouping was suitably glitzy.Alas, the pull of pattern evidently proved too strong, hence pleated stripes, a floral-print lamé organza, and an outsize arrangement of hand-painted flowers that sprouted with dimensional embroidery. One particularly diva-esque gown combined a glistening blue-black sheath with a yellow duchesse-satin cape that rounded inward like a deflated hot-air balloon. By contrast, when that same brilliant yellow was pitched against coral as a guipure, the freshness came through.While Mabille has always taken a liberal approach to hue, his connection of “freedom of color” with “freedom of thought” helped ensure a spectrum of options for those who gravitate towards his designs. To close the show, he presented three white gowns; he insisted weren’t destined for brides, but they nonetheless suggested his overly glorified view of femininity with emphasis on the male gaze. “I like this sense of women wanting to be objects of desire, but at the same time, they don’t care.”
22 January 2019
As much we’re supposed to be focusing on Alexis Mabille’s latest flirty, ultra-feminine dresses, it’s impossible to ignore the fact that a model’s entire face is mysteriously masked behind a reflective shield. Created by Paris-based accessories designer Marie Beltrami, it’s essentially a giant mirrored sunglass. Mabille, whose theatrical couture creations have recently been worn by Beyoncé and Rihanna, explained that his intention was not to hide the woman’s identity but to create an effect that hovered between surrealist and sci-fi; think: Magritte crossed withIron Man. Combined with the foreboding Paris sky—that killer view is from the upper terrace of the Cité de l’Architecture, which will open next year care of the Girafe restaurant below—the statement is more unsettling than he probably envisioned, especially since he also mentioned a certain projection of ourselves onto the face. Yet it certainly introduced a different dimension to all the pretty applications of fine lace and broderie anglaise.For the past few seasons, Mabille has streamlined his ready-to-wear register to what he does best—no more dabbling in athleisure—and this lineup included a number of pleasing updates (speaking of updates, he has also just designed his first restaurant, fittingly named Froufrou). Crisp, striped poplin appeared as off-the-shoulder bustier tops and breezy, bias-cut skirts; here, his signature bow waist detail morphed into a clever trompe l’oeil tied shirt. His choice of pastels stood out for their brightness—like those favored by the Queen rather than soft baby hues. Still, they were limiting compared to a chic black trench dress or the white shirt and shirtdress that seduced from behind.Often, Mabille’s newness had more to do with styling than silhouette. Slip dresses trimmed with lace were layered under skirts and dresses, while a dramatic golden yellow gown was shown over a classic blue men’s shirt. From the maxi shirtdress in blue gingham featuring a removable plastron to the pink piqué coatdress with its removable collar, several designs invite women to slightly personalize the look—no mask necessary.
25 September 2018
Scan the lineup from Alexis Mabille’s show and you won’t get a strong sense of fall. The palette was predominantly weighted toward pastel pinks, blues, and purples; dresses in allover lace and gowns that cascaded with tulle didn’t favor one season over another, nor did the long sheath dresses with their asymmetrical necklines, wrapped waists, or tuxedo detailing. Some of the shirtdresses looked downright beachy. The designer admitted as much, saying that his impulse was to impart “freshness and sensuality,” rather than limit himself to a seasonal construct, which might not even pertain to how or where his clientele lives.The freshness certainly came forth in watercolor floral motifs that had been hand-painted, and an attractive black-and-white stripe organza dress that excited the eye with its strong graphic statement. A slim black tuxedo and two versions of a couture blouson in geometric brocade were freshest and coolest of all mostly because, if you were to splurge on them, you would wear them frequently.But Mabille’s forte remains the special occasion gowns, often taking a go-big-or-go-home approach to volume. (Should a silhouette take priority over sitting down?) Worth noting was how he downplayed the surface detail this season, hiding sequin embroideries within the tulle layers so they would softly shine through. Still, what became clear is that such fine workmanship remains at the service of an idealized woman. “There will always be this desirability,” he explained. “Ultimately, I’m reflecting from the perspective of a man—what would give these women that extra aspect of vibration—because then they see someone they want to marry or make love to. And I find that very interesting because it becomes about more than the creation.” Whether you agree or take issue with that, his twist on the traditional wedding dress—a jumpsuit in Lyon and Chantilly lace topped with a sweeping satin skirt extending upward as a bow-cum-bodice—was a winner.
3 July 2018
Last season’s collection title, Paris Blossom, has given way to this season’s French Kiss. If these register a tad twee or cliché, perhaps there’s something to be said for Alexis Mabille perpetuating this image of la femme française even as other local designers explore an altogether different look. Taking a pause from the runway, he presented a range of flamboyant separates at his boutique-cum-showroom, first showing off a gemstone photo-print magnified so enormously in scale that it filled the front of a drawstring-waist tunic. What followed was a jewel-toned palette extending into gradient shades of Prussian blue and fuchsia, which Mabille applied to voluminous silk poplin skirts and dresses as breezy as silk scarves. The lineup was full of flounce; yet cuffs and skirt elements could be removed thanks to rows of diamond-effect buttons—a brilliant touch, so to speak.Certainly, Mabille was smart to give shirtdresses enough leeway to be properly flirty when worn barelegged, or relaxed as a pajama look when paired with trousers. The range of blouses, freshly enhanced with lace inserts, pleated high collars, and tonal embroideries, remains the designer’s strong suit, maybe even more so than all his tuxedo riffing. When he veered away from his couture sensibility—faux leather coaxed into tear-away pants and a crunchy bubble skirt (blame the crinoline)—the results were less assured. Then again, a quilted bolero in shiny gold bordered with black might attract a big name who wouldn’t ordinarily be drawn to Mabille’s usual mix of cocktail and party attire. The Brash Bourgeois title is his for the taking.
1 March 2018
The women of Alexis Mabille’s show looked a lot less precious than usual; for starters, there was not a trace of his girly sheerness until nearly two-thirds into the lineup—and even then, only one of the looks leaned too baby doll. Instead, his characteristic drama took shape largely though crisp satin, lamé brocade, and piqué silks—less exposure, stronger presence.It’s not uncommon for Mabille to draw on masculine codes to heighten the feminity; this time, aside from one lustrous Smoking, he gave classical feminine volumes—Watteau backs, corsets, and various full skirts—the right of way. And then there were the double French braids, a hairstyle that all too often gets conflated with a tough-girl attitude. These ones, however, were iced with costume jewels—as though the point was to keep these girls in a rarefied milieu.“The most beautiful trait is to be yourself and own it,” read his quote that accompanied the show notes. Backstage, he added, “There’s so many personalities in these looks—some are chill, others are extremely couture. . . . I wanted to show the idea of women making choices for themselves through all this color and form.” Needless to say, at the couture level, choice becomes more imperative for the designer and higher-stakes for the client; but make the options persuasive enough and someone will be willing to pay. Mabille noted that the biggest dresses always sell first. In that case, the strongest contenders would be the emerald green gown in duchesse satin boasting a bustier that swooped around to a caped back; and the bustier gown covered in black guipure lace featuring a black corset and a giant bow through which the arms could slip through.
23 January 2018
If French lace and French stripes are two things that you immediately associate with French fashion, then Alexis Mabille’s Spring collection, titled Paris Blossom, might play nicely into your French fantasies. Anyone who spends time here as the trees are in bloom can confirm that this is when the city is at peak pretty; it seemed that the designer was aiming for this level, as well. He rightly noted how a masculine shirting influence became essential to balancing his liberal use of saccharine pink, frills, and flounces. But even when reimagining business-blue stripes, Mabille still offset them with lace and coaxed them into girly bell skirts. “I wanted the lightness, the freshness,” he said, listing cotton voile, pleated silk, and poplin as the materials that got him there. Since no one would debate the airiness of a lace negligee, the breezy sundresses, pajama trousers, and trenches in technical faille were more convincing examples of everyday attire that could stand heat and AC alike.The reduced range of eveningwear was duly noted now that Mabille has decided to save his dressiest looks for pre-collections. It’s too early to tell whether this is a smart strategy, but at least the boudoir aspect of several looks would take them into night. As for the exposed, colorful lingerie, he called up his pal Dita Von Teese, who supplied a sampling from her own namesake brand. Indeed, it wasn’t a stretch to conclude that Mabille was painting a portrait of a bourgeois gal eager to release her inner coquette. This cliché could conceivably win over non-Parisians, who would also see novelty in the embroidered Paris T-shirts. As for locals, extroverts might appreciate the perforated metallic imitation leather outerwear for transition temperature days; purists, meanwhile, might just take a pass.
29 September 2017
For his latest haute couture collection, Alexis Mabille imagined how the scent of a woman would look. The multisensory idea gave him wide interpretative inspiration; for just as some people smell something and immediately envision a color (one aspect of the phenomenon known as synesthesia), he will tell you that this lineup of 20 soirée dresses grouped by color tones represent a wardrobe based on his interest in fragrance notes.Consider his creative pièce de résistance, a blouson blanketed in sculpted gold lamé flowers, studded with tiny jewels at their centers; this was his translation of bergamot, tonka, and opoponax—which as a perfume, would itself translate to something bright and citrusy yet also enveloping. The floral scents of geraniums and peonies informed the red creations, which included a decidedly dramatic velvet dress with voluminous sleeves lined in layers of pleated organza fading from red to pink. It gave off quite the bouquet. Whatever you make of the metallic grouping materializing from notes of ginger and verbena, the flounced and tiered lamé bustier dress and brocade coatdress both qualified as effervescent.By now, it’s worth asking: If you had neither background in fragrance composition, nor knowledge of Mabille’s subjective accords, could you still appreciate this collection? Most likely his faithful muses will be drawn to the pink dress with a crisscrossed neckline not because it is visually redolent of peonies, but because the silhouette strikes as flattering and original. Which leads to a follow-up question: Did the concept complicate the design? In a way, it kept Mabille more focused, even while he remained in his fantasy register of princess tulle and ever-present bows.It’s not a stretch to wonder whether this was a tease for an eau d’Alexis. Nothing imminent, he said. Incidentally, the presentation space was unscented, which was probably for the best. But while investigating his embroideries up close, one almost hoped to detect a faint sillage.
4 July 2017
No matter how much Alexis Mabille enjoys conceiving everyday clothes, he’s most in his element designing for dressier occasions. Presumably aware of this, he is repositioning his pre-collections as a wardrobe heavily weighted toward eveningwear. From a showroom the size of a deluxe walk-in closet, he said he worked on this offering as an immediate and accessible translation of what he proposes at the couture level. But there was another notable difference here: greater ease. For all the silhouette-defining bodices and structured skirts that looked like obvious cocktail attire, many of his “relaxed evening” looks boasted airy volumes and loosened lines.He singled out a billowing T-shirt dress elevated by its fabric and lace finishing as well as a softened Le Smoking in vivid purple as the stars of this approach. An off-the-shoulder tented gown with sheer striping, a flounced LBD inspired by a beach wrap, and a comparatively restrained plissé soleil gown in midnight blue qualified as strong supporting players. His integration of men’s codes—piqué-effect silk, a blue shirt spiked with Lurex, tuxedo detailing—balanced out the heightened femininity elsewhere.As is evident in the photos of a girl descending a red-carpeted staircase, Mabille puts concerted effort into making an entrance, and if his spectrum of princess pink numbers suggested the fairy-tale version, the more sophisticated touches—an embroidered bolero or trench-style tie dress—were just plain chic. The collection might not be to everyone’s taste, but as a statement against overexposure, it is tasteful, which should earn the designer points among high society women in a wide range of markets.
21 June 2017
Alexis Mabillebegan his lineup with a black suede sweatshirt dress boasting an embroidered white-lace dove clasping an olive branch in its beak, which he paired with metallic gold, thigh-high boots. If pacifist sport chic is among the consequences of these strange, unknowable times, well, we might be okay after all. Kidding aside, the dressed-up daywear and swish soirée looks resonated strongly this season, thanks to their sincere messaging. Indeed, with this offering, Mabille treated his ultrafeminine starting points with greater neutrality and nonchalance. For all the flare of a bustier shirtdress in golden silk or ball gown skirts tied at the waist, classic shirts encrusted with lace and brocade in blue and gold that conjured deluxe denim were the type of separates that could accompany women from client presentation to first date.Mabille enlisted French duo, Smoking Smoking, to provide a live performance; if their gold catsuits seemed unreasonably flashy, their confident voices and thoughtful lyrics gave the collection a different kind of creative, spontaneous spin. If only Mabille could learn to dial back some of the stylistic flourishes—a sweatshirt need not have been tied around the waist of a gown, and pearl or gold buttons could have been smaller than gumballs—his skills could attract a wider customer base. No matter; his long-time admirers are probably already anticipating the moment his lace jogging pants, striped silk shirtdresses, and yes, those gold cuissardes, start arriving in stores.
2 March 2017
“They’re flirty, strong, and very sensual, but in the end, they have the same desire as all young women: to be married,” saidAlexis Mabilleof the feisty gals played by Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell inGentlemen Prefer Blondes. Let’s assume that he was speaking not of today, but of 1953, when the Howard Hawks film declared itself in trailers as, “The most glamorous musical of our age.” This might account for the hot pink number in ruffled organza—considerably more poufy than the one immortalized by Miss Lorelei Lee (aka Monroe).But rather than riff too much on the film, Mabille wanted to offer suggestions of a wedding dress sans wedding ring. Replacing what would have been white for a crayon box of color was the obvious place to start. Those girls not wearing tiaras were usually adorned with sparkle elsewhere—diadem-shaped sleeves or belt detailing. Veils appeared throughout—when not worn as a headpiece, then cascading as an overdress, shrouding as a caftan, or extending as a train. Conversely, there was little nuance to the corset detailing and negligees, which signaled life postnuptials. The collection in five words or less: beauty pageant, bridal, boudoir.Mabille, historically, enjoys a healthy amount of role-playing with his collections. Here, though, it’s hard to tell whether the retrograde vibe was earnest or ironic. Of little doubt was his exhaustive workmanship—all those volumes, encrustations, and embellishments—which might make some women consider ordering them as actual wedding dresses. The swirling ribbon embellishment with the tulle of the final dress was an idea worth exploring further. And there was something intriguing about a corseted bodysuit to which he added layers of dramatic black tulle and called it a “bridal cape.”
24 January 2017
In a lot of ways,Alexis Mabilleis a very French designer. His pre-collections tend to include tweaks on familiar French staples, like the tuxedo, the trenchcoat, and the men’s shirt, but Mabille is also interested in the offhand wayParisienneswear them. (Think of the French girl cliché, and a woman in jeans, her boyfriend’s button-down, and messy hair probably springs to mind.) The Mabille twist often comes down to unlikely combinations and fabrics: See Pre-Fall’s simple blouses with mink-trimmed cuffs or the razor-sharp suit in a lush floral jacquard. Whipping up casual pieces in fancy fabrics has become one of Mabille’s signatures; similarly, he has been experimenting with less-fancy gowns, like a pink taffeta number that mimicked a men’s shirt wrapped around the bust. A member of his team reported that it has been a best-seller; we’d bet the steel-blue gown with off-the-shoulder bows will be popular, as well.Mabille’s customers will be happy to see more of his usual flou here, from lacy blouses to joyous tulle frocks. But the tailoring was more memorable, like the close-fitting jacket with flared sleeves that you could open or close with gold buttons. He interpreted the idea for a gown, too: It came in a black body-sculpting fabric with a thigh-high slit and long, button-trimmed sleeves. It was at once sleek, demure, and sexy—a winning new combination for the designer.
11 January 2017
For Spring,Alexis Mabillesaid he was thinking more generally and inclusively than in prior seasons during which he crafted a defined narrative for each of his collections. His words of choice today were “sensuality” and “combining eveningwear with daywear.” That kind of broad-stroke inspiration can essentially mean anything; what he sent out was an array of separates and dresses, widely informed by a palette of primary colors. In terms of specific associations, the whole collection felt like taking a drag through an ultralight, seventies-era California filter.The lineup had hits and misses. Mabille is a proven dressmaker, and there were a number of frocks that felt fancy but fresh for waking hours, like a chambray coat dress trimmed in broderie anglaise lace or a black-and-white cotton tunic, also embroidered with broderie anglaise. His best was a shirt dress in white taffeta with trendy ruffling at the neckline. The use of red, yellow, and blue stripes on a handkerchief top was also chic.One got the sense, though, that if Mabille tempered his flashier impulses, this presentation would have been stronger. Tops with “Alexis” spelled out at the shoulder were too full-on, and styling each look with crystal-embellished sneakers seemed incongruous. The key to his success today was in lightness and cleanliness, foremost.
29 September 2016
IfAlexis Mabille’spast two haute couture shows expressed a personal narrative, this one came across as professionally on point. Models replaced the friends and muses he recruited for those previous occasions, and a raised runway kept the format classic and gazes focused. Unsurprisingly, this was in service of the collection, which Mabille described as, “A bit traditional but with a cooler feeling.” The 23 passages spanned the tailleur-flou continuum, from the mauve Perfecto lengthened into a floor-sweeping dress to a corseted confection in peachy plumetis and tulle. Perhaps owing to its pastel palette, which Mabille likened to dawn as the sun begins to break through a grayish sky, the lineup seemed more suited to spring than fall. But the hues were also his effort to channel Cy Twombly, whose instinctive, uninhibited approach left its mark on the art world and beyond. Mabille has never been a minimalist and haute couture would not seem like the time to try, yet a slight tilt towards spontaneity over excessive surface detail suggested the influence. A corset paired with a skirt draped to mimic a trench tied at the waist was unexpectedly offbeat. With the “Gainsborough blue” sheath in crepe and lace enhanced by a collapsed white shirt, the flirt factor was high.Those two examples played sharply against the final grouping gowns; here the gleam of radzimir buttressed from within and underneath produced volumes that were neither forcefully architectural nor softly romantic, even though the workmanship was clear. Where the amplified shirtdress in white silk appeared ambiguously ceremonial, the final unfurling cape and crystal trousers had opera singer appeal. Mabille mentioned he now has clients in their late teens. “They don’t want to go to where their grandmothers go,” he said. But of course, and rightly, he’s designing for both.
5 July 2016
Resort collections don’t arrive in stores until October or November, but Alexis Mabille had spring on the brain. Of course, the women who buy these clothes for holiday vacations are likely to keep wearing them into the warmer months, too. Mabille focused much of his attention on spring’s fresh flowers, developing giant pansy prints, daisy embroideries, and a lovely floral cotton eyelet. On their own, the slip dresses, shirting, and handkerchief skirts had a girlish, youthful appeal, but layering was key in this collection. For instance, in one look, a floral skirt was layered over matching pants, and in another, a floral skirt was tossed over a lace-trimmed slip dress, which was layered over a white T-shirt. Mabille has never been a minimalist, and while those layers encouraged creativity and a throw-on-and-go ease, it might be difficult for women without a stylist at the ready to pull it off in real life.As for the evening looks, which were part of Mabille’s relatively new capsule of ready-to-wear gowns with couture flourishes, the fabrications and details were the same. Dresses in bright, eye-catching shades of yellow and nail-polish red—including one in the pansy print—would stand out at a high-wattage gala, but the ones in crisp cotton weren’t so successful; they felt a bit stiff and shapeless, and they could have done without the big crystal buttons.
7 June 2016
First, a disambiguation: In Britain they call what models walk down acatwalk. One reason for that is that the wordrunwayis already taken in their British dialect: in Olde England, the R-word means exclusively what airplanes take off and land on. Thus to British ears the titleProject Runwaysounds like a reality show for romantically bereft aeronautical engineers.Catwalkoriginally meant the walkway on the exterior of a building, but was later incorporated into the lexicon of fashion through some no-doubt-sexist etymological act of appropriation. (Althoughcatwalkdoes apply to menswear too).In France they call what models walk down apodium, which is super-dull even with a French accent. So todayAlexis Mabilletook Britain'scatwalkand ran with it. “Life is a catwalk!” he said (in his great, onion-soup accent) preshow: “I wanted to show a parallel between this life in catwalk, every season, and the girl’s life too—it’s a game around that sensuality.”Purrrrr-haps this was stretching the feline theme—which featured a “cataflouge” silhouette print and a velvet cocktail dress with an arching cat head at each tulle-flanked breast, and a curling tail on each shoulder blade. But, then, why not: Mabille is a technically very accomplished designer who favors feminine clothing with a direct message—pretty, sexy, girly, buy-me.He mixed his ingredients like a new NutriBullet owner, enthusiastically; red stitched chalk stripe on chambray, spotted tulle, lingerie-lace fringing, sportswear hemlines and sleeve inserts, smoking jackets in Paris pink, tablecloth florals, and transparent silicone outerwear were just a few of them. The results, however, were cohesive and convincing. Mabille and his family house are one of the few Paris independents out there, and they are making clothes their clients relish. It might not be especially now, but it was very miaow—and Mabille’s audience lapped it up.
3 March 2016
Picking up where his last couture collection left off, Alexis Mabille enlisted an inner circle of friends, actresses, and veteran models to add a personal facet to his predictably glam designs. Unlike the previous season’s tableau vivant, this lineup played out as adéfiléthrough a series of gilded salons, where a stilted rhythm weakened Mabille’s good intentions. Production glitches aside, his diversity of looks corresponded to the diversity of his muses, such that Carmen Kass opened the show in an Old Hollywood white crepe tuxedo dress swelling with ostrich feathers, followed by Audrey Marnay in a coquettish embroidered lace LBD. Compare and contrast the puffed ombré “summer fur” (pleated, frayed organza and feathers) top and slim pants worn by Debra Shaw with Luping Wong’s lingerie-inspired gown in Chantilly lace with jet beading, and you sensed how Mabille might even consider his creations like character studies.Yet this remained a collection designedby, not designedfor. Mabille’s overwhelmingly sheer dresses favor male fetish to female confidence; which is to say, they weren’t likely personal requests. Alternatively, his tailored crepe gowns—Look 7’s classic bustier style or Look 10’s Spencer-inspired jacket top with split sleeves—reassured that he’s not out of touch with a more relevant sensibility.As for the collection’s title, Timeless Beauties, Mabille’s finishing touches can often feel slightly behind the times—or perhaps the prevailing tastes. But there’s no arguing that the gown with a lattice of crystal embroidery carries the same allure today as it would have 10 years ago—and that a barely there Chantilly lace dress will register as sexy in a decade as it does right now.
26 January 2016
Jane Birkinmay not be French, but you’d be hard-pressed to name a woman more synonymous with “French girl style.” The fact thatAlexis Mabille, a French designer known for haute couture gowns, would cast the tomboyish Birkin as his Pre-Fall muse further speaks to her pseudo-Parisian allure. To wit, the best looks in his new collection were the ones that nixed the bells and whistles in favor of a subtler, more Birkin-esque femininity. A trim peacoat was paired with silk pajama pants and sneakers, while a navy sweatshirt studded with nautical gold buttons was tucked into a chambray skirt. “Simple” may not be Mabille’s thing, but those quieter items were easily the most desirable. He could have done without the sailor-style skinny jeans—better to leave jeans to the experts; elsewhere skirts and dresses with stiff ruffles felt dated, not insouciant.Mabille’s pre-collections usually focus on daywear, but a sequined tuxedo (styled with Converse) was a cool twist on his nighttime signatures. He also introduced a new capsule of evening gowns, which sit somewhere in between couture and ready-to-wear; lower price points and few embellishments should attract a wider range of customers. A drop-waist lace gown in sherbet shades of lilac, blush, and coral stood out, but it’s the pool-blue sequined dress that we’ll see first on the red carpet; Mabille often dresses the girls behind the French duo Brigitte, and sequins are their trademark.
6 January 2016
In 2011 a food-supply scandal made the news in China when watermelon farmers who had sprayed their crops with a chemical product that promised rapid growth were dismayed to discover it served only to make their melons explode into worthless pulp. Earlier this month a minority stake inAlexis Mabillewas sold to a 3,400-outlet Chinese fast-fashion outfit called Peacebird, which plans to roll out a network of Mabille stores in China.Mabille chose the watermelon as his motif for this, his first post-Peacebird ready-to-wear collection. There was a sequined watermelon on the front of a ruche-armed sweatshirt teamed with some jaunty shorts and a sheer half-skirt, watermelon print split-to-the-hip pants, watermelon bracelets, watermelon necklaces—you get the drift. More ambiently watermelon-touched were the dubious contra-color layered lace slip dresses—in watermelon-esque tones—and satin separates. This collection was at its best when sans watermelon yet explosive of silhouette: The oversize biker jackets and skirts were easy and fun. There was also a sweet ’80s-flavor jumpsuit with volumized arms and a tonal fold at the neck. Plus, Mabille slices a pretty fine jacket: The single vented (watermelon) red example with an interestingly projecting revere was proof of that. There was an emphasis on open-at-the-back shirting—perfectly fine—and an insistence on miniature backpack fanny packs—kind of Philipp Plein.This was very much a local’s show, packed to its marble rafters with Parisians breathily just-about tolerating (as only Parisians can) the abundance of their fellows. The new Peacebird aspect to Mabille’s story lent it an edge, which the clothes unfortunately rather lacked. It also made you really hanker after a nice ripe slice of lovely, juicy watermelon: organic, ideally.
30 September 2015
This year marks Alexis Mabille's 10th anniversary as a couturier. Two weeks ago, he was decorated with the Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres distinction by the French minister of culture, Fleur Pellerin. And while Mabille's exceedingly feminine designs have been unwavering, the articulation of his vision has taken all sorts of twists and turns. But as a love letter to his muses, this latest outing stood as one of his strongest in a while. Rather than go to elaborate lengths of crafting an haute couture collection around a forced idea, he channeled personal connections into personalized creations. First, he reached out to 15 of his hall-of-fame muses, including Dita Von Teese, Leslie Caron, Bérénice Bejo, Audrey Marnay, and Mounia Orosemane. Then, in lieu of a show, he enlisted photographer Matthew Brookes to capture them in portraits. Yes, the echo of John Singer Sargent was deliberate.The most sincere message was how Mabille sought to communicate that these client connections are the beating heart of haute couture. So for Von Teese, he made an alluring emerald green jersey and duchesse satin corseted gown with a distinctive embroidered scarf detail at back. Caron, spectacularly ageless at 84, radiated updated chic in an embellished white blouse and high-waist tuxedo pants piped with vinyl and jet beading. Here's hoping Bejo wears her hand-painted gradient lace sheath as soon as her next red carpet opportunity arises. And Mabille might want to consider modifying Orosemane's inky blue taffeta shirtdress bordered with metallic lace inserts for his ready-to-wear so more women have access to it.The collection could have lost its cohesion, given that each look was so particular, but it didn't, if only because the gigantic bows, crystals, beaded fringes, pearl lattice overlays, and painted silk flowers marked different expressions of Mabille's maximalist spirit. Brookes mentioned Mabille hammering home that old chestnut about the dress not wearing the woman. And for the first time in a while, that felt about right.
8 July 2015
Alexis Mabille is a designer who likes to play with the idioms of French style. This season, he took on one of the bête noires of non-natives seeking to ape Parisian chic: the scarf. The most vivid looks in Mabille's new collection paid homage to those devilish fabric squares, with squared-off silk scarf dresses, bandanna prints, and details such as ties on blouse sleeves that mimicked the insouciant knotting of a neckerchief. There were other recurring motifs, such as the lacing that embellished quilted sweatshirts and kicky minis, and Mabille showed some suave tailoring, notably his long-limbed trousers with stripes of lace running down the leg. The looks here with the most immediate appeal, however, were the ones in which the lace took center stage: The designer's short lace dresses and skirts had a winning sporty attitude, and his lace turtlenecks made for distinctive layering pieces. All in all, the collection didn't offer any particularly strong propositions, but it did sell you on its carefree, summery vibe.
9 June 2015
If the omnipresent athleisure trend has given women permission to wear their barre-class clothes to brunch, Alexis Mabille figures they can wear his dressed-up sweats to a swish soiree. In conflating two diametrically opposite club inspirations—gym and night—he reworked the humble gray tracksuit as belted jackets, twisted-neckline minidresses, and skirts with lace overlays. Jogging and tuxedo pants alike featured a single stripe down the leg, as if making the case that they're really not so different after all. Mabille's overarching theme—the fabric twist—also appeared as a jumbo-size trompe l'oeil print applied to sheaths for day (silk) and evening (lamé).A grouping anchored in chambray held the most appeal, aside from the wayward pink metal chains and crystal closures, misguidedly added to underscore that denim is only evening-appropriate when bedecked in bling. But the excess of embellishment—see also the logo plaques on beanie caps—communicated an even more important point: The line is fine between juxtaposition and overcompensation. Gray leggings with ankle-strap heels were definitely examples of the latter. As always, Mabille expended much effort and energy into making sure his models looked cute—so much so, in fact, that the collection proved an exercise in trying too hard.
4 March 2015
Among the works by French writer and Baudelaire contemporary Albert Samain is a poem from 1893 that begins, "There are strange evenings when flowers have a soul." Strange evening aside—in Paris, anyway, this one felt rather normal—Alexis Mabille used that line to imagine female and floral forms as inextricably linked. By no means a novel proposition (this is Monsieur Dior's territory, most of all), the collection could be distilled down to dramatic folds of fabric requiring deft tailoring typically applied to tailleur, as well as contoured draping in solid, saturated hues. Near the start of the show, a shimmery midnight blue gown, followed by a poppy-printed chiffon kimono, hinted at timeless dresses depicted in famous paintings from around Samain's era—Sargent's "Madame X" and Derain's "Madame Matisse" come to mind. But this was not a period collection so much as one that further confirmed Mabille's obsession with overworking his designs. Integrated capes and shawls amplified silhouettes that didn't need amplifying. A bow, his maison signature, assumed such dimension in the final look that the model occupied just one side of it.Samain was part of the Symbolist movement and, in literal terms, the humongous hand-embroidered pansy and peony appliqués qualified as striking decorative symbols (colorful hair feathers—whether meant to evoke fronds or stamens—qualified, too, but with less success). But even allowing that the collection did not aim to turn back time, it lacked the nuance those artists understood so well.
26 January 2015
Alexis Mabille was in a daywear mood this season. That's not his natural temperament: At heart, he is a fantasist, a designer who likes to decorate the hell out of his clothes—an approach that usually makes more sense for cocktail frocks than it does the kind of items women wear on repeat in the sunlit hours. Pre-Fall found Mabille constraining that decorative impulse, to a degree. Riffing on the idea of an arty girl, with a taste for both Impressionist florals and Constructivist geometry, he worked mainly in a neutral palette of black, gray, and navy, with occasional shots of lurid violet, and emphasized workhorse pieces such as shirtdresses and trim skirts and trousers. This collection didn't amount to arealisticwardrobe, exactly—the skirts were too short for that, and Mabille's tendency to cut an asymmetric hem or drape a faux scarf over a printed blouse or go for a tonal stripe when a plainer fabric would do kept otherwise straightforward pieces from looking like staples. The instinct there wasn't wrong, as the designer was obviously working to create a sense of "specialness," but his execution often read as affected. You could extract a good number of nice items here—the bow-collar shirts and little silk wrap dresses had an insouciant,trèsParisienne chic, for example—but otherwise, there was an overabundance of detail.
9 January 2015
Alexis Mabille opened and closed his show with two versions of a "boxing dress," short in satin, long in crepe. Normally this would invite some analogy to being in fighting form. Yet the designer stressed backstage that, despite the obvious sport message, this collection was an exercise in conceiving a wardrobe of ultrafeminine essentials. Mabille explained how each piece related back to sport in some way, even if obliquely; he added track trim and a hood to a white cotton gabardine trench, for instance, and turned sweatpants into the type of high-waist trousers that could be worn to the theater. Meanwhile, all those mesh sheaths over sequined gold bikinis leaned more towardSports Illustratedthan SoulCycle—a flawless body would be a prerequisite for wearing them. As for the styling effects—repeated use of large military chain slung around waists or necklines, and transparent film bandaged around torsos for high-gloss impact—they exaggerated the notion of glamour to a level that most women wouldn't consider re-creating off the runway. It was with some relief that the final grouping of asymmetric dresses in satin and crepe, some affixed with interpretations of Mabille's signature bow, felt almost anticlimactic.A prolonged soundtrack interlude of orgasmic moaning prompted some to giggle and others to look around uncomfortably. Certainly this clashed with what Mabille described as the "delicateness and elegance" of his ideal woman today. For a collection that aimed high, it was a low blow.
24 September 2014
"What is the most beautiful in virile men is something feminine; what is most beautiful in feminine women is something masculine." That Susan Sontag quote provided Alexis Mabille with a starting point for his new Haute Couture collection. Mabille's general idea was to incorporate some element of a man's wardrobe into each of the outfits. Nothing groundbreaking as far as concepts go, but it did produce one of the designer's most restrained and accomplished offerings in some time. First out was a "tuxedo" consisting of a double-breasted jacket and long, narrow skirt, the wool on both pieces fused with lace to create a tempting bit of peekaboo at the waist. Elsewhere, the neckline of a black lace gown was accented with lapels, and a white bib-front shirt was extended into a dress. As a rule, the more masculine the look, the more compelling it was. A frilly dress embroidered with naive parrots on a vine lost the plot. But an emerald green strapless number, the torso of which was built like a jacket with lapels peeled back to reveal the creamy satin corset underneath? We'd bet Mabille's star client Dita Von Teese already has that one on hold. It put proof to the Sontag maxim, and then some.
6 July 2014
At heart, Alexis Mabille is a couturier. His sensibility doesn't run to ready-to-wear, at least not in its current, easygoing incarnation. Mabille wants to decorate, to adorn, to bring every kind of feminine frippery to bear on his clothes—bows, flowers, ruffles, and more. You suspect he would have gotten along fine at Versailles, but in the here and now, his collections inevitably cry out for reduction. This season, Mabille was really pushing himself to strike a more relaxed tone; his muse was theGreat Gatsby-era tennis player Suzanne Lenglen and his theme was a romantic take on sport. He was onto something with pieces like the bouffant miniskirt done in crisp chambray. That item was one of many that featured Resort's signature element: a pleated ruffle that circled around waists, collars, and hems. The ruffle was fine on its own, if overused, but it contributed to the atmosphere of too-muchness when synced with some of the collection's other recurring motifs—a blurred floral print and delicate lace. (There was also a smattering of embroidered butterflies, a callback to Mabille's last couture show, which felt unnecessary.) Meanwhile, he came as close as he ever has, perhaps, to minimalism with his sleeveless-vest-and-track-pants combo; the vest looked sharp, with its strong shoulder and tuxedo detailing, but the trouser silhouette seemed a bit tired. There was also a near miss in the voluminous shirt and coatdresses: That super-volume trend is pretty much passé. Mabille is a talented designer, to be sure, and his technical skills are formidable. But he could do with an editor, particularly if he wants to make inroads into the American market, where his brand has struggled thus far.
5 June 2014
Alexis Mabille sees bow ties where the rest of us see, well, tied sleeves. The designer titled his Fall collectionCoup de Vent,which he translated into English as "breezy." He explained before the show that he wanted to convey movement and effortless cool because that's how he sees women dressing today. But instead of forsaking his characteristic flair, Mabille flouted the notion of basic by ornamenting sweatshirts with Swarovski crystals and proposing sweatpants entirely in tulle with sparkly motifs around the knees. He singled out a "jogging-smoking" silk satin ensemble as his pièce de résistance: Purists might take umbrage at combining a hoodie with tuxedo striping in one look, but Mabille is fearless when it comes to remixing, which helps explain why some outcomes ended up stronger than others. Those extraneous shirtsleeves, for example, seemed like affectations (people never tie a white poplin shirt around their waists just cuz), and handkerchief hemlines were challenging. Mabille found a groove using tartans on minidresses and blouses, which he then paired with taffeta skirts. The designer's masculine-feminine fixation played out on a gray flannel fluted redingote and again with an inky blue evening suit for the show's final look. Unlike the sneaker ubiquity everywhere else, he stuck to stiletto booties. What they lacked in easy-breezy, they made up for in attitude. And Mabille will always lean toward the latter.
25 February 2014
When Alexis Mabille says he is returning to the classics, he essentially means he is exploring his greatest hits with a little less frou. So for his second pre-collection, he reduced his ideas down to flattering high waists, all-day-everyday dresses, and some assorted dandy details. Yet again, Mabille has reimagined his signature bows, this time as mohair grosgrain (yes, there is such a thing) down the placket of a blouse, as delicate hardware affixed to cardigans, and integrated into the back pockets on quilted denim.The newsiest part of the collection was the new AM print in a medley of typefaces, from Victorian to collegiate. The silk was printed according to the same savoir faire practices as Hermës. Its this level of sourcing that also elevates his jackets (with their mother-of-pearl disc buttons) or party dresses (a duo of lattice-patterned and Chantilly lace) and reminds that Mabille was preparing his couture collection at the exact same time as his pre-collection.Across all categories, Mabille has a track record of overthinking—or overstyling—his garments to a fault. He's getting better, though—only the Paddington-esque military coat here suffered from excess embellishment. Lingerie underpinnings and Le Smoking iterations got a boost from color, in ultramarine and brick rose. In fact, Mabille says hes bored with solid black, though as a concession to black's eternal chic, he showed two dresses in black jersey with matching lace across the décolletage.
21 January 2014
Goddesses are trending at the couture shows. Yesterday Donatella Versace conjured glam ones in crystals and acid hues of orange, green, and purple. Tonight, Alexis Mabille tried to bring the goddesses of Greco-Roman statuary to life. If he didn't make as good a go of it as Lady D, first to blame are the paper butterflies that multiplied in the models' hair and occasionally alighted on their noses. Second are the shoulder-duster rhinestone earrings. Mabille needs to learn to simplify. The exemplary fit of his classically constructed gowns would make a bigger impact if it weren't mucked up by all the extras. We clocked several beauties in this show, from a pair of silk crepe columns draped from halter "necklaces," with the effortless appeal of a toga or a sarong, to a more rigorous bustier dress, lace appliqués decorating the hips. A body-limning Chantilly lace number stitched with crystals will go down as the most convincing case ever for his career-long obsession with bows.But in other instances, Mabille's gowns were more showgirl than goddess. Where else but onstage would a floor-length sheath with a belly button-exposing teardrop-shaped cutout be called for? Likewise, there was something of the costume department in an exuberantly pleated "Mark Antony" coat worn with beaded tulle leggings. If the model hadn't been clutching it to her breast, she might have fallen backward from its weight. There'd be no ascending to the heavens in an outfit like that.
19 January 2014
Alexis Mabille hit upon an intriguing starting point for his new collection: He was reimagining Rosie the Riveter as a Vargas girl, a kind of pneumatic tomboy pinup. That gave Mabille some depths to plumb, especially given his historic interest in ultra-feminizing masculine signatures. Here, that modus operandi was evidenced in a myriad of slinked-out and/or be-flounced adaptions of workwear, such as the military jumpsuit and the denim dungaree. Some pieces worked better than others; the flounced trenchcoat, in a sheer laminated nylon, was indeed very cool. And the show-opening khaki silk jumpsuit nailed the sex-bomb tomboy inspiration right on the head. Elsewhere, though, there were some head-scratching looks, like the one-shoulder dungaree romper or the crystal-bedazzled rodeo shirts or the atavistic racerback tank tops and dresses. There was a very scrambled take on Americana going on in the collection—a kind of fantasy of hardy American girls—but Mabille never really rose to the occasion of exploring that theme properly. Some of the embellishment looked like decoration for decoration's sake. The simplest looks came off the best: This season's standout for Mabille was a navy gown, almost monastic in its covered-up-ness, with an Empire waist, three demure buttons at the collar, and a jaw-dropping amount of volume in the skirt. The gown wasn't particularly literal to Mabille's theme, but it expressed it, somehow.
24 September 2013
For his first-ever Resort collection, Alexis Mabille decided to do thingsen español.Flamenco flounces. Floral and lace appliqués in the style of ceramicazulejo.Long-legged gaucho pants with a slit up the side. Mabille's mix of references seemed more instinctive than rigorous, which had the effect of making this showing feel a touch cluttered, especially inasmuch as he was also integrating sport and menswear elements, not to mention various iterations of his signature bow tie. But a few garments stood out, like those gaucho pants, and a tile-print button-down with full, slashed-open sleeves, and a simple khaki shirtdress with blue-toned piping. There were other good pieces, too, though it sometimes felt like hard work to extract them. Mabille's bow-handled clutches, on the other hand, were easy winners to spot.
7 July 2013
Alexis Mabille claimed the nineteenth-century Italian painter Giovanni Boldini as inspiration for his couture collection this season. Boldini's fluid brushstrokes earned him the title the "Master of Swish." In an effort to recreate a similar sense of movement on his clothes, Mabille reproduced those swishes here, hand-painting otherwise simple tapered pants with ombré effects (trust that no female sitter of Boldini's ever wore trousers), as well as a pair of charming evening dresses with large white flowers. The draped folds of a couple of duchesse satin gowns suggested that Mabille had made a close study of the artist's work—how the movement of Boldini's brush created light and shadows. They were almost luminous. Other times Mabille's evocations of the Victorian era came off with more of a thud. "It's a play on the past, but twisted in a modern way," the designer said. But try as he might, there's no making leg-of-mutton sleeves look contemporary. It's equally hard to conjure the living woman who wants to wear bows on each shoulder that extend beyond the crown of her head. Boldini was one of the most fashionable portrait painters of his day—only John Singer Sargent was more famous. If Mabille wants that kind of success, he's going to have to learn when to say when.
30 June 2013
Alexis Mabille acknowledged that his menswear is "un peu égoiste," which is to say, he often designs what he wants to wear. This isn't a shocking confession; more often than not, it establishes a built-in point of view. What it does reveal when you see the clothes, however, is that Mabille sees himself as something of a global soul who appreciates dandy details and sportswear ease in equal measure. Those two tastes dovetailed nicely in a jacket constructed from pliant raffia with a hood extending from the collar. What wardrobe is complete without a few incognito essentials? But there was nothing subtle about the hooded sweatshirt, its backside covered in the thermo-printed mantra, "Tonight I wear Mabille so let's set the world on fire I can burn brighter than the sun." Cue the David Guetta electric dance music and Ibiza backdrop.Mabille differentiated his denim by adding piping along the back yoke and pockets (and a stitched AM as bonus brand presence). And he made his shirts stand out by adding two built-in bowtie accents—each was a clever (albeit particular) way of embellishing the neck without actually adding neckwear. Girls might gravitate toward certain pieces —the scooped-neck Liberty-print tanks and the pajama-style shirts—especially since there's nothing dressed-down about Mabille's womenswear. The designer said he deliberately created pieces that register as gender-neutral (women may even be tempted to accessorize with a floral ornamented bowtie or the turquoise smiling skull necklace). This might also be how Mabille reconciles his self-interest.
28 June 2013
Even if you couldn't be bothered to read the show notes, which enthusiastically explained that Alexis Mabille was feeling the early-eighties vampire flickThe Hungerthis season, the fact that the Bauhaus track "Bela Lugosi's Dead" was looping on the sound system would have clued you in to the designer's theme. Much of this show was like that: just a bit too on-the-nose. In particular, Mabille's approach to referencing eighties-era silhouettes and more-is-more styling was rather too literal to feel elevated; and studded, crocheted, and gold-tone looks likewise went at the glam-goth vibe with overmuch directness. You didn't get the sense that Mabille was adding anything very new to that conversation. Still, this collection did have its strengths. Mabille's tailoring—a couple of gray flannel looks accented with camel, for instance—could have formed the basis for a very strong show. The designer was also on to something with his blouson-sleeved shirting and his pieces in a multicolored leopard dévoré. Overall, though, there was too much going on here, and more problematically, Mabille's maximalism suffered from a lack of restraint. Even a big look demands design discipline—especiallya big look, in fact.
27 February 2013
Alexis Mabille was recently made an official member of the haute couture club. It's a rarefied clique, with only 16 other houses on the list. Before his show tonight, he said he set out to impress the Federation with his technique. "In the past, I focused on structure," he said. "Here I concentrated on the craftsmanship—what we can do for the client." His attentions paid off. This was a finer outing than usual, less zany than many a Mabille show past.It started with his focus on separates—not daywear, per se, but not red-carpet bait either. He established the more intimate feeling from the first look, a pleated organza camisole strewn with lace, accompanied by a pair of tapered radzimir pants. (Pants have begun turning up with some frequency at the couture shows since Raf Simons' debut at Dior.) A sleeveless button-down with an embroidered bib and an ombré-dyed tiered and pleated floor-length skirt struck a more formal but nonetheless versatile note.Mabille didn't rein things in entirely. His penchant for bows got the better of him on more than one occasion, and a point d'esprit catsuit with a Chantilly lace overskirt was misjudged. Still, his friend and front-row guest Dita Von Teese will have options when she visits the atelier. A coral silk crepe evening gown with an origami rose bustier will make the most of her assets, but a double-breasted black smoking dress with a slit up to there would also look smashing on the burlesque star.
20 January 2013
Alexis Mabille has a tendency to overplay his hand. On the runway, his clothes are styled to the hilt. But this season, he showed by appointment in his Galerie Vivienne boutique, one of two shops he's opened in Paris in the last year. "We show it in the boutique to show it how it really is," he said, on a break from preparing his couture show. How is it, really? The short of it is there's no stripping Mabille of Mabille. (Nor, it seems, of convincing him that not all men are as fond of bows as he is.) But the quieter atmosphere did at least allow the designer's strengths to come to the fore. If his multicolored leopard jacquard suit, multi-fabric cowboy shirts, and tailcoats were a bit much, the knits and shirts quietly embroidered with LEFT and RIGHT on the arms offered a more palatable dose of cute.
16 January 2013
Macadam Summer is the title Alexis Mabille gave his new collection. Backstage he said he was thinking about "a girl who stays in the city and doesn't care about the countryside." His trick was to create urban clothes using elements more typically associated with a vacation by the sea. Brigitte Bardot's famous Vichy print—gingham to you and me—appeared on boxy jackets, button-down shirts, and miniskirts. Another way the designer conveyed his idea was to pair a sweet white sundress edged in lace with chunky black motorcycle boots.Mabille isn't going to win any prizes this season for high concept, and the show could've done with a stiff edit. First to go should've been those tiered ball skirt and T-shirt looks—city or country, they don't work for daytime. Still, this was his most charming collection in a while, more youthful in spirit than Fall and stocked with more sellable merchandise. Mabille is celebrating a new store on the Left Bank's Rue de Grenelle tomorrow night, and we're betting that it's the retail space that's the root of his newfound savvy. Top in our book was a little black cocktail dress suspended from the neck with one of his signature satin bows.
25 September 2012
Pity the designer who had to follow Raf Simons' blockbuster debut at Dior. Today, that task fell to Alexis Mabille, and the Frenchman suffered by the comparison. A beauty look that had his models sporting crescent moon hairdos with diamanté brooches suspended from their tips did him no favors, but the collection's more fatal flaw was its lack of focus.Backstage, Mabille said he was "imagining women as jewels." That gave him his far-ranging color palette—malachite to opal to topaz to platinum—and an excuse to lay the sequins on thick. Beyond that, it was hard to connect the dots between the show-opening clingy black jersey dress trimmed in 600 buttons and the finale look in nude crepe veiled in a silvery organza. Still, there were a few winners in the mix. The long-sleeved velvet number with slits on the front and back of the bodice and batwing sleeves stood out for its simplicity. There's beauty in diversity, sure, but a strong point of view is everything in fashion, as Simons made so clear at Dior. Mabille's collection didn't have enough of that.
1 July 2012
Pitti Uomo, Florence's menswear trade fair, is an odd venue for Alexis Mabille, Paris' leading proponent of cuter-is-better. The usual Pitti attendees are men for whom 100-degree temperatures are no excuse for removing their studiously knotted neckties. What they made of Mabille's Spring '13 collection, which was shown, runway-style, descending a flight of exterior stairs at the fair's Padiglione Centrale, we'll never know. Very few of them seemed to see it, busy as they were with the rest of the day's to-dos.Pitti might have shaken Mabille out of his usual comfort zone, but in the end it didn't. In a palette of black and white with forays into delivery room pinks and blues, Mabille showed what he described as a mix of daywear and eveningwear, inspired by the nineteenth-century Parisian hot spot the Mabille Garden—"almost like a nightclub of today, but in the afternoon," as he explained it. Painted-on jeans, short shorts, knits knotted around the waist, and masses of buffalo check gave the garden party feeling, the disco element coming from sequins and studs. It was very casual and very young, two things its environs and their visitors are not.So whatis the likeliest response. Mabille has just signed a new investor; a room of his own—in the form of a new store in Paris, with a second planned to follow just months later—arrives this fall.
19 June 2012
Alexis Mabille adores bow ties. And he's counting on his clients loving them, too, because they were the big idea at his show today. Bow tie prints, bow tie embroideries, bow tie earrings and bracelets, bow ties on the backs of shoes—when we said big, we meant it.He named the collection Let Me Be Bo-Bow, and he explained backstage that it was designed with the bourgeois bohemian types native to Paris' ninth arrondissement in mind. Young professionals who play as hard as—maybe harder than—they work, and mix day clothes with night and vice versa. Picture rhinestones dolling up a cardigan, and hoodies making appearances under smoking jackets.It's not a new idea, but it's not a bad one, either. The trouble is those bow ties got in the way. They're his signature—how he got his own start after putting in time at YSL and Dior—so we can't complain about Mabille's affection for them, but we can begrudge him his reliance on them this season.
3 March 2012
A quote from Marcel Proust—"It is only women who do not know how to dress that are afraid of colors"—preceded a brief statement from Alexis Mabille about "the science of color" and energy as therapy. His show certainly promoted a fearless approach to color blocking. Each outfit was monochrome, from brightest red to palest blue, and each model's face was painted the same shade as the enormous tissue flower mounted on her head.But the real inspiration for the show was anything but pseudo-science. Mabille was inspired by a photograph of iconic model Lisa Fonssagrives on a beach, her face suffused with pink from the sunlight coming through her umbrella. A more recent picture of Christy Turlington by Patrick Demarchelier also provided a bit of background.That's the kind of forensic stuff that establishes Mabille's love of fashion. But it also isolates the quality that makes his couture collections so much less than those of the grand masters, who feel the clothes in a much more instinctive way. "This is couture you can really wear," Mabille enthused after the show, but actually it was a boy's dream of Paris fashion, gorgeously complete in its solipsism. There was scarcely an outfit that wouldn't have worked a miracle in a Hollywood film from the thirties or forties or fifties that called for the heroine to wear "fashion." Take a look at the kimono jacket in pink-lined red satin over a red column dress, or the peignoir of palest blue tulle over a full-skirted gown. The painted faces only emphasized the artificiality of the clothes.
22 January 2012
Alexis Mabille is a decadent par excellence. If furbelows have a champion in menswear, it is he. That taste may keep him from household-name status in American menswear or out of the collaboration labs of fast-fashion companies, but it's given his collections an occasionally subversive charge. Alas, you can have too much of a good thing. Mabille's new collection was long on quilted leather, velvet, and guipure lace. The dominant silhouette paired a peplum blouse with skintight pants whose appliqués resembled thigh-high boots. The stated inspiration was Henry VIII. The result looked like Jonathan Rhys Myers on a fancy-dress lark, which, despite whatThe Tudorsfans may tell you, is not the same thing.
18 January 2012
There was something decidedly less precious about Alexis Mabille's girl this season. For one thing, with daisies stuck in each model's hair, she looked like she'd taken a literal roll in the hay before sauntering down the runway; and then there were those slinky, Marant-ish dangly silver earrings giving Mabille's cute some swagger-y cool.His show notes described a girl who's in touch with her masculine side yet sticks to her womanly ways. That dose of sartorial testosterone seemed to be just the thing to temper Mabille's saccharine leanings. Banker stripes merged surprisingly well with white lace as trim on sweet little shirtdresses, and even better when inset in the sleeves of a crisp button-down. One of Mabille's twists was the shirt formed into a bustier, its sleeves knotted into a bow. One slip and it could have felt gimmicky, but he got it right, particularly on two evening looks near the end of the show. In fact, the best things skewed very XY, like another evening option of an hourglass-shaped waistcoat and sleek, toreador-style pants with the tiniest flourish of a Mabille bow at the calf.Inspired by the cinematography of the filmThe Garden of the Finzi-Continis, the show was staged in a picture-perfect greenhouse at the Jardin des Serres d'Auteuil. That gave Mabille full rein with the Laura Ashley florals in the middle of the show, which, when combined with tasseled fringe and lace, recalled a little girl's ticky-tacky bedroom circa 1984. And in that vein, we can excuse it as a passing phase.
1 October 2011
A young designer like Alexis Mabille is living testament to the potency of the Parisian couture mythos. The gowns he creates are the sort of thing you imagine a boy racked by fever dreams of fashion would conjure up: big, elaborate, luxe confections that would once have been the very definition of "Paris fashion" for the likes of magazine readers, moviegoers, and anyone anywhere who lived a vicarious life as opposed to a glamorous one. But Mabille always brings more than that to the table, usually something arcane and utterly French. It doesn't always work, but at least he gets an A for effort.This time, he looked to La Fontaine's classic animal fables, dressing his models in outfits inspired by all forms of furred, feathered, and feelered creatures. The Ant was in glossy black crepe, with side slits baring an expanse of thigh. The wings of her Grasshopper rival were duplicated in lamé and duchesse satin on the bodice of a dress.The Black Wolf was in black velvet with Swarovski "fangs" running down both arms. Long silk fringes were bunched to form a bustier for The Horse. Then they were tied in the back, where they flowed into a tail-like train. The Magpie was perhaps the simplest and the most effective: an elongated black swallowtail coat over a white crepe column.There was both drama and logic in such pieces. But not always. The poor Swan was cursed with mustard yellow leggings below her minidress of tattered white organza. As for the Frog (which sounds so much better in the original as La Grenouille), she wore a silk gown so huge it was easy to imagine dwarves were supporting her under her dress. At least that was an image that stuck with the fabulist theme, but it also highlighted Mabille's tendency to the overwrought. A weakness, for now.
3 July 2011
Fashion shows are occasionally obscure in their reasoning and impenetrable in their semiotics, but give Alexis Mabille credit: The opening tableau of his Spring show told you everything you needed to know. Four models in rolled white cargo pants, espadrilles, and printed tees stood side by side. The first's top read "ALEXIS M'HABILLE" (that's "Alexis dresses me," the verb pronounced just like his surname). The second: "ALEXIS ME DESHABILLE" ("Alexis undresses me"). And with that, the models whipped off shirts and dropped trou. Voila: Mabille's new underwear collection, created in collaboration with the skivvies label Hom.Briefs are big business (just ask Calvin), so hard to blame Mabille for branching out. Backstage, he noted that their entry-level price point would open up his brand to an entirely new clientele. He mentioned that with his clothes—interior and exterior—he's always been interested in the inner workings and structures as much as the outer shows. "I wanted to go inside," he said.The collection's nominal theme wasbain de soleil—"sunbath"—which accounts a bit for the disrobing (in some cases, shedding actual robes). Summer by the sea called for swimwear in addition to underwear; lightweight suiting pieces, a few with a brocade chain pattern snaking up the legs and around the waists; and numerous twists and turns onmarinièrestripes, from those peeking out from the lapels of a gray jersey peacoat to others adorning a cotton-knit poncho.
22 June 2011
Ah, the seventies. At the moment it's the decade with a ripe popularity level roughly equal to that of Anna Dello Russo making her way through the Tuileries. But for 32-year-old Alexis Mabille it holds the lure of childhood nostalgia, even though he was born too late to experience it firsthand. Some boys never forget their first fashion loves: In Mabille's case he name-checked Anjelica Huston and Nan Kempner.That duo's louche and lean sensibility is somewhat at odds with Mabille's effervescent cuteness. Squaring the two was his obvious task at hand, and a point of difference when using less-than-original source material. It was evident in the sweet little hits of color you got through pastel piping on jersey wrap skirts, languid twinsets, collarless coats, and flowing Halston-esque silk gowns, and even a turtleneck worn under a square-cut tunic dress. And, of course, the bows. One was worked into the back collar of a black smoking like a little gift. But the smartest Mabille touch here was all the little covered buttons, especially when seen in profile running down the side of a sleeve or trimming a hem.One reason this era boomerangs back into fashion so frequently is that there's something forever modern-looking about it. But that element was missing here in the overwrought look of suede-fringed scarves, heavy tunic shapes, and paisley prints. It's not that you couldn't pull out great pieces, but the big picture was probably best left as a sweet memory.
5 March 2011
Alexis Mabillelikes a schism. It's what has given his work—for men or women, and for better or worse—its skewed charm. Today, he showed in the Musée Bourdelle, the space where, 100 years ago, Antoine Bourdelle made white plaster maquettes as dummy runs for his huge sculptures. Mirror images, if you like. And that was actually the theme of Mabille's show. Each outfit was offered in white and then rerun in a colored version. A fr'instance: Look #1, "Vestale," was a floor-length sheath in purest white crepe, as virginal as its name. It was followed by exactly the same piece in midnight blue.Mabille cut one dress from squares of white lace, then duplicated it in the same lace prettily hand-painted in the colors of Sèvres porcelain. The effect had some psychological impact—dark versus light—when an asymmetric, one-shouldered gown in two tones of green with a pink rose garland reappeared in white, the flowers now camellialike. The conceit got tired soon enough, but it did allow plenty of time to reflect on the fragile detail of the designer's work. It had its own quiet drama, too, in final outfits wrapped in huge duchesse satin overskirts that untied to become capes. It was the kind of racy transformation you imagine France's First Lady, a Mabille fan, would be happy to make.
23 January 2011
Some ideas hover in the fashion ether in a given season, getting twisted and tweaked by designers across the board. Safe to say,Alexis Mabille's campy Scottish theme isn't one of them.In seasons past, Mabille has shown menswear so replete with feminine totems and icons—especially the bows with which he festoons both his men's and his women's collections—that it often felt scarcely like menswear at all. The rough-and-tumble Scotch brought out a slightly more masculine side of him; maybe that's what he meant when he opened the show with the assertive "Choose Life" monologue fromTrainspottingon the soundtrack.Even so, cuteness persisted. The dominant pant was a skinny jean that laced all the way up the leg like a corset. Wouldn't try to sausage Begbie into a pair of those. Forget about gilted brocade pants and tulle tees sequined with Mabille-ified whiskey logos. Fabric play led the designer down some potentially interesting avenues, like a loden overcoat that drew its peculiar sheen from a mixture of velvet and neoprene. But overall, the collection's reliance on whimsy threatened to stifle it.
19 January 2011
With his first ready-to-wear runway show, Alexis Mabille fell victim to Tyro Excess syndrome. In a venue where the heat level was stifling, he showed way too much of way too much. His show notes listed influences that spanned Godard, Visconti, Van Buren, and Dufy…a full chaotic complement. Mabille's bailiwick is a fizzy girlishness—all crinolines and coy bows—and in small couture-sized doses, it has its appeal, but the full monty of a runway show took him to places he didn't need to go. Stretch leather leggings? A doilylike top? By that point, the easy charm of a silk parka or the dress stitched from two square cotton scarves earlier in the show had been long obscured.
2 October 2010
Alexis Mabille went through a phase of thinking it was modern to mix his ready-to-wear and his couture into one homogeneous stew. Reason prevailed when he realized that wasn't doing his craft any favors. But with his new couture outing, he maintained a ready-to-wear fundamental by building his collection from mix-and-match separates.He started out with a basic eight top-and-bottom combinations and managed to double, maybe even triple them. Admittedly, it was mostly by exchanging a skirt for a pair of pants, or removing a dressy outer layer, but Mabille made his point nevertheless. With a twist, of course. His clothes are scarcely the stuff of an everyday wardrobe, hence his insistence that he was designing for "high-profile events" in the life of the modern professional woman. So a tuxedo jacket could be paired with pants and a pussy-bowed blouse in pink silk crepe, or worn over a simple black cocktail dress. Or a long evening coat might be worn either with a black turtleneck and full lace skirt or a lace bustier and black cigarette pants.The craftsmanship that Mabille was keen to highlight was most obvious in a black velvet column with a lavishly embroidered and beaded bodice. Random trompe l'oeil petals cascaded down its front. It was the kind of seemingly throwaway gesture that confirms Mabille's sly talent.
4 July 2010
It was bow ties, butterflies, and daisies in the dunes for Alexis Mabille. Paris' master of contemporary camp put on his show in the Oratoire du Louvre, a cool, stone Protestant temple on rue Saint-Honoré. Sexy, scantily clad men aren't the usual entertainment at the Oratoire, and a few eyebrows were raised about staging a fashion show in a church, but this designer isn't one to stand on ceremony.Until now, Mabille has spent most of his design time decorating the classics—embellishing dressing-gown jackets in kimono-pattern silks, for example, and generally going to town with his signature bow ties—but he took a desert-survival hike for his Spring Mirage collection. Somewhere in the sand he found a new slouch, easy volumes, and a certain laid-back sporty chic.Jean jackets in sandy tones with sun-ray yokes looked likeMidnight Cowboyon a weekend in Palm Springs, and the combi-short in tan boiled-cotton jersey with mechanic's overall zips had true grit. Sleeves, back yokes, and waists unzipped for a wear-it-your-way rusty linen tunic, gold-dusted heavy silk parka, biker tux, and poncho blouson in quilted jersey.A desert trip isn't without its perils for Mabille. He's a fanciful sort, and aLawrence of Arabiainspiration could've easily turned into a costume parade. As it was, crochet daisies inspired by something from his grandmother's attic and scattered over jackets and mixed with wood rosary beads for thick, twisted voodoo cuffs erred too far on the fey side. Still, his post-hippie band of sun-kissed wanderers was a seductive lot.
23 June 2010
"Graphic surgery" was Alexis Mabille's apt tag for the geometric, color-blocking games he played for Spring. Vertically splicing bi-colored looks from the models' middle-parted hair down to their mismatched shoes—an outfit might be shocking pink on one side, black on the other—the collection was a departure for a young designer more known for bows and dressy, delicate lace. Is he, too, feeling the Celine-led urge to pare back? "Well, I don't know," he said. "I was looking at Cubist and Suprematist art, and Calder. But, yes, I wanted something cleaner, with less embroideries."The geometric theme gave Mabille a chance to train the eye on his skillful way with cutting, piecing, and jigsawing fabric into tailored pantsuits and coats, supple skating dresses, and a plethora of eveningwear. His bows haven't gone entirely missing—they turned up as a side-tied sash on a narrow pantsuit and formed a frill on a neckline, and also appeared as fat, lush sequined bags. But the problem was that plethora. The economy Mabille applied to line and cut didn't extend to the show's edit. Halfway through, he meandered onto different subjects: black pailletted halter dresses with white collars, a skinny black sweater with a sweeping skirt, silk sailor tops with a minute raw edge. They were all great, but this is a talent who still has to learn that, in terms of putting on an attention-grabbing show, less can be more—especially when that's the technical idea he set out with.
24 January 2010
Alexis Mabille is the young contender at Paris couture—a new talent with a romantic touch, a French sensibility, plenty of skill at his fingertips, and a refreshing way of thinking about merging old ways with new. For Fall, he said he started by imagining a girl waking from a languorous night of dreams tangled in her bedclothes. Well, she comes from a very nice home, this one. Apparently, she sleeps on exquisite white Swiss lace-edged linen pillowcases, shell-pink silken sheets, and luxuriously hand-worked cotton coverlets, which were variously cut into everything from fragile dresses to scallop-edged peacoats to drapey tuxedos to simple togas with a beautiful flow about them.If that sounds like high-flown concept, Mabille's knack is that he's able to take the precious materials of couture fabrics—weightless organdy, guipure, and elaborate broderie anglaise—and treat them with a degree of reality that defuses theoretical grandeur. "I wanted it to look loose and casual-fitting, so she can wear things with the attitude of pulling on a T-shirt," he said. "I tried to play with simple graphic shapes, so everything floats. She's not such a girly-girl."The collection also demonstrates an ambitious range—Mabille can turn out structured cocktail bustier dresses for ingenues as well as smart tailoring and chic evening suits for sophisticates. The show could've benefited from a tighter edit, but that's forgivable from a designer who's still stretching his wings. Credit to him for developing a signature, and for the pragmatic focus that underpins his enterprise. "It's not just a question of having fun. I have couture customers, but I'm also offering ready-to-wear options alongside these things," he said. "I want to build a business." He's certainly come a long way from being pigeonholed as the guy who does cute things with bows and bow ties. Now the bows are the basis of a large collection of bags, jewelry, and accessories—and are still evident in the satin sashes and shoe decorations sprinkled through the runway collection. But to judge from the growing accomplishment of this show, Mabille's set to go a lot further still.
5 July 2009
Style.com did not review the Spring 2010 menswear collections. Please enjoy the photos, and stay tuned for our complete coverage of the Spring 2011 collections, including reviews of each show by Tim Blanks.
24 June 2009
Now that Michelle Obama has come out so solidly in support of young American designers, it's only natural to wonder whether Paris has an on-the-rise talent of its own who could be taken up by France's First Lady. One such contender might be Alexis Mabille, a 30-year-old Lyon-born designer with a pedigree from YSL and Dior, who is now in his third season. He certainly made an ambitious leap forward today, sending out a huge collection of over 50 looks. Though some of that was menswear, and much of it could be discounted as unfocused juvenilia, he proved he's capable of moving beyond his status as the little guy who does cute things with bow-laden bags and shirts.Despite a page-long, rambling press release, there wasn't much of an evident theme to hold the collection together, but there were plenty of head-turning moments. He picked up the Paris vibe for glitter with a glowing, deep-green panne velvet dress with fishnet sleeves, and a sparkly red jacket thrown over gold lamé knee-length shorts. He also proved himself as a tailor with skinny bird's-eye tweed pantsuits and chic Parisian pairings of a peacoat over a long dress, and a topcoat shrugged over wide-leg pants. The results were grown-up, but never stuffy. The image to take away was a beautiful look on Chanel Iman—a brown velvet circle skirt with layered blouses in mink-collared café-au-lait charmeuse and cream silk, one of Mabille's signature ties at the neck. It would look great at lunch at the Élysée Palace, if anyone's watching.
25 January 2009
Alexis Mabille is the new boy in Paris, stepping onto the runway during the couture season for the second time with a buzz and a glamorous audience (including the grand Italian couturier Simonetta, high-ranking friends from LVMH, and lots of pretty girls) around him. The ideas he showed were based, he said, on on the students, staff, and parents at an "imaginary mixed school." They had freshness and charm—and plenty of the hallmarks of the business in witty bow ties he's been running since 2005. The motif, naturally enough, turned up in satin on the heels of shoes, running along the spine of a black gown, as decorations perking up in the back of the girls' heads like little ears, and as peacock-feather brooches. Still, what Mabille had to offer in the way of clothes—slim black dresses with piqué shirt bibs; drop-waist, navy silk schoolgirl shifts; and an easy-chic, elongated pantsuit—demonstrated that he's well on the way to growing beyond the accessory niche of his beginnings.
29 June 2008