Paul Costelloe - London Fashion Week Spring 2008

Opening the London Fashion Week season this year was Paul Costello was not a high point.
Paul Costelloe’s collection this season was not my absolute fave. But keeping in mind that I am by no means in his “target market” of mature women (read: older), I can comfortably say it was alright. This collection was designed for your fabulously rich grandma (or older aunt with a great bod) who lives in the Florida Keys and enjoys tan in a can. Her clothing choices boarder a thin line between eccentric and just plain tacky. The beginning of the collection was easy-going and light and filled with high paper-bag waist-hems (which I look amazing on a variety of body shapes) and gingham dresses. Then everything went south. As many of us know, metallics have indeed made a comeback and it was definitely a trendier move for Costelloe to toss them in the pot. However metallics + floral + paper-bag waists= too much. That mixed with the entire package of stark blond hair and over-tanned skin (think Charlize Theron’s orange tan fiasco a couple years ago) was a bit much. And understand that this was not a styling error, as many pieces were created with a combination of the aforementioned themes.