Every season, designers showcase wearable masterpieces down the runway. Embellished gowns, luxurious coats, and over-the-top accessories define fashion week, reminding us that the power of fashion lies in the industry’s ability to innovate and reinvent itself year after year — it’s ability to change. Think of Sarah Burton, who, under McQueen’s name, flawlessly executed a collection of rich, white gowns without losing her uniqueness. Or think of veteran’s, like Karl Lagerfeld, who constantly outdo themselves — just juxtapose his Versailles extravaganza from last year to his volcanic world of ashes from this season, and you’ll see. Yes, designers’ brilliancy lies in their creativity, but it also lies in their ability to know what fits the body best. For clothes to rise to the oh-so-coveted level of haute couture, they have to fit perfectly. Otherwise, they look nauseatingly disastrous. The same can be said for relationships. What can start out fitting as perfectly as one of Burton’s gowns for the season can end up looking as bad as Uma Thurman’s 2004 Lacroix catastrophe. Relationships are just as volatile and unpredictable as fashion can be — just think of John Galliano and Christian Dior. What had been an ideal match since 1996 ended abruptly after the designer went on an anti-Semitic rage. Who knew the creator of the maison’s magical gowns and outrageous sandals would lose control of himself? We enter relationships thinking that we have found “the one,” that we found our couture piece, but we forget that we change — people change. Sometimes it is just important to set romance aside and to stop clinging to the past. Hold onto the memories of the good times, savor them, but don’t hold onto to something that used to fit but now just feels like couture gone wrong. It’s always good to revamp our closets — who knows what we can come out of that? We can find the old pair of Seven jeans that still makes us look our best (even when we are having a terrible day), and we can make space for new clothes that better fit who we are becoming. In this issue, we celebrate fashion and it’s making. Maria Idenova reviews the latest designer collections, reviews the latest trends, and greets Theory’s newcomer Oliver Theyskens. Our Haruka sat down with Closer’s costume designers, Scout Larue and Anya Ember — their modern masterpieces have definitely created buzz on-campus. Finally, yours truly went strolled down Thayer Street and photographed what our cherished stores — Urban Outfitters and Berk’s — have to offer for this season. With spring break just ten days away, who needs an excuse to go shopping?
Wishing you luck on midterms,
Luisa & Haruka