2012 Recap: Biggest Fashion Moments of the Year

This year is coming to an end, so I've decided to have a look at what happened these past 12 months and remember the biggest fashion moments of 2012. Here are  my top 10 choices:

1. Raf Simons is the new creative director of Christian Dior after a year of searching for the perfect replacement for John Galliano. The first collection he designed for the French House was for the Haute Couture Fashion Week in July and it was a stunning start that brought everybody's hopes up regarding the future of the brand.

2. Alexander Wang was appointed creative director of Balenciaga in December after Nicolas Ghesquiere resigned from the House. Everybody is waiting for his debut collection to see how he will translate his fashion forward sense of style into the 100-year-old fashion house.

3. Valentino was bought by the Qatari Royal family, but the designer duo formed by Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pier Paolo Piccoli continues to design breathtaking collections in the style they accustomed us with. Everything seems to be going well for them! 

4. Heidi Slimane was announced as the new creative director of Yves Saint Laurent after Stefano Pilati was ousted from the brand. The former creative director of Dior Homme, Heidi Slimane had retired from the fashion world to become a reclusive photographer in Los Angeles, but he quickly gave that up in favor of his new position. His first collection however received only tepid reviews and was described as "frozen bohemian chic... that lacked a new fashion spirit". I'm very intrigued to see what will happen with his next collection. 

5. Carine Roitfeld published her new magazine in September! The CR Fashion Book will be published twice a year and will live online in between the issues. The first book was centred around the pregnancy theme, inspired by her daughter Julia who was pregnant at that time. Now that Carine herself is a grandmother, she gives the word a new meaning: "Grandmother doesn't mean that you have gray hair and stay at home cooking cakes for your grandchildren. Now a grandmother is young, and she's still doing a lot of things - a grandmother can wear high heels".

6. The Little Black Jacket book by Karl Lagerfeld and Carine Roitfeld, a fabulous photography book showcasing the famous Chanel black tweed jacket revisited by the fashion stars of the moment.

7. The fashionable closing ceremony of the London Olympic Games featuring British supermodels Kate Moss, Naomi Campbell and Karen Elson, alongside Stella Tennant, Jourdan Dunn, Lily Cole, Lily Donaldson and Georgia Jagger. The eyes of the world were on them.

8. Cara Delevigne is the emerging it-model of the year. Featured on numerous covers and in editorials of the greatest fashion magazines and in the Victoria's Secret 2012 runway show, the British model is both stunning and versatile and she won the title of model of the year at the British Fashion Awards. Can't wait to see more of her in the upcoming shows!

9. Alber Elbaz celebrated ten years as the designer of Lanvin and there were a few special collections launched this year: an accessories collection, a collaborations with the equally famous Laduree macarons, a coffee table book, a new fragrance and everything was topped with Mr. Alber Elbaz himself singing on stage at the Fall 2012 Lanvin afterparty.

10. Last but not least, Angelina Jolie's leg at the 2012 Oscars deserved to be on this list! The gorgeous black Atelier Versace gown with a thigh high slit was the perfect match for Angelina and it created so much buzz that her right leg even got its own Twitter handle and has around 42 000 followers.

This was my Fashion Recap of the year 2012. I hope 2013 will be as exciting as this one, if not even better! What was your favorite moment of 2012? Enjoy all the New Year's Eve parties you've got planned and see you guys next year with plenty of exciting news and photos! Happy New Year!

Photos: Google Images, The Times, Fashionologie, Fabsugar