Balmain - Spring/Summer 2011

It did not take long for Christophe Decarnin to return to his love of trash luxury. After allowing himself to be swayed by more sensible influences (for one winter season), the designer is renewing his vows with the rock sex appeal that was at the source of the last "Balmainania."

If we are to believe Decarnin, those who recently chose to throw out their ripped jeans and t-shirts got it all wrong. For summer 2011, Balmain celebrates a hypothetical return to luxury grunge, i.e., fringed jean cut offs, ripped loose cotton t-shirts and leather jackets covered with safety pins.

The problem may be, though, that this collection is either ahead of its time or too far behind. Fashion has been moving onto something else for the last several seasons, and the reign of trash glitter is too fresh in our memory for us to be ready to dive in again.

Besides, if this collection seems at first sight susceptible to please girls like Freja Beha, it is also accompanied by a strong feeling of déjà vu. How is it that Emmanuelle Alt - consultant for Balmain and Isabel Marant - suggested the same style details to both labels, depriving them of their uniqueness?

Over the course of the show, we found a good number of looks that made Isabel Marant's last show so successful: low cut heels, red ¾ pants, rockabilly looks and mini leather jacket, all of which were all too similar to those in the Parisian designer's last show (as seen here and here).

In other words, if we take the Marant fall/winter 2010 girl and add a twist of the Sex Pistols, we get the updated Balmain girl - the only noticeable difference being that at Balmain, DIY details are present en masse.

On the catwalk, the safety pins were omnipresent, and tie-dye and home made graffiti t-shirts were everywhere. Clearly, it has never been so easy to make your own Balmain pieces at home.

Between the DIY-ers (who will already have reproduced the punk pieces from the French house's studios), the recessionistas (who will have to be satisfied with accessorizing their Marant pieces à la Balmain), and the mademoiselles who have definitively had it with ripped t-shirts costing 1000 euros each, we can only doubt the commercial success of the Decarnin's newest opus.

Finally, when in the same day, Ghesquière proves that at Balenciaga, punk can still be considered pertinent (under the condition that it is given a minimum of soul), Decarnin's lack of creativity becomes particularly flagrant. It is high time that the Decarnin/Alt duo passes the baton...

Click here to view the entire collection: http://www.style.com/2011RTW-BALMAIN