Balmain Spring 2011 Fashion Show

From WWD;

Christophe Decarnin has the Balmain show down to a biannual fashion drill: Take your seat and wait for the music to announce the seasonal theme. So once Frank Sinatra’s crooning morphed into Sid Vicious’ screeching cover of “My Way,” there was no question what was in store for spring. Out came the parade of punk princesses, done up in tattered stars-and-stripes tanks, skintight, acid-washed jeans, and leather biker jackets and microscopic skirts, studded and safety-pinned all over. There were leather bustier tops and shiny red jeans, but no dresses this time. The haute lowbrow look, however glam, is casual by nature.

This was not intellectual fashion, nor does it pretend to be. “I’ve always loved punk,” explained Decarnin backstage. “I think it’s very strong.” And at face value, the collection once again lived up to its reputation as the label for fun, flashy clothes for women with money — lots of it — who want to feel young.