Paris Fashion Week AW 2014: Christian Dior

The collection presented by Raf Simons for Dior was created with the vision of real life in mind. The women 

envisioned by the designer live in a city which is both real and romantic, so he wanted to "present them with freedom and possibilities in the way they dress too". The designer's aesthetic is centered around women and power and emphasizing femininity in an essentially masculine world. The collection was as much about these preoccupations as much as it was also about the legacy of the House. He incorporated classic staples such as the Bar jacket created by Christian Dior for his 1947 collection and revisited them in a more modern way. There were a lot of double breasted jackets in black or very bright colors, short fluid dresses and bi-layered dresses with different hemlines and colors.  

Among my favorite looks were the canary yellow double breasted vest in the opening photo, the coral and camel coats, the fluid, quilted black and midnight blue mini-dresses, the minimalist white dress and the one paired with a fuchsia ruffle-hemmed scarf, the yellow dress paired with a black jacket and scarf, the double-breasted camel blazer worn with a very delicate mini-dress in pastel colors underneath, the red and blue over-the-knee dress in a silhouette reminding so much of the classic Dior, the white and blue dress with a flared skirt, the quilted black form-fitted dresses, the pink and green gowns and of course the simple black and white dress with a laced corset-like side. Here is my selection of the most interesting looks from the runway:

I have to admit I was not swept away 100% by this collection, but there are were some really strong pieces that I loved. What I didn't really appreciate was the styling of the models. For some of them the combed back hair look was really nice, but it didn't work so well on others. I would have liked a less severely revealed forehead or at least a chic chignon in some of the looks. What did you think about the collection and styling? Would you have done something differently?

Photos: Yannis Vlamos / Indigitalimages.com