About Phoebe Philo

I had another post that I wanted to work on for today, but for some reason this weekend I became obsessed with Phoebe Philo. I watched the “new” Celine fashion show, helmed by Hedi Slimane on Friday (as maybe did some of you?) and afterward felt depressed. I know there’s way bigger things to be upset and sad about but I think that’s why fashion should be in this world, to be fun and give you an outlet to feel good, and instead I felt like Hedi’s collection was all about an overpaid man erasing the work of one of the best female designers who wanted to create clothing for women and make them feel strong. Emotional? Who, me?

I wasn’t a big shopper of Celine (I have a bag and a coat and some accessories) but I always loved looking at the collections. I thought that Phoebe was usually designing for a taller, more bold woman than me so I knew that a lot of the pieces I admired wouldn’t work if I tried to wear them, but yet I still looked to them for inspiration and an overall aesthetic. And I thought that Philo herself was someone to aspire to, who had built the sort of career where she could step away for years if she wanted to, and come back when the time was right and dictate her own terms to the world’s biggest luxury conglomerate. I know she’s also been lucky, but I also think she is so talented and has a vision.

So to cheer myself up, I looked at some of her own personal style and also wrote down some learnings for myself.

Stay true to what you like! The first photo in tans above is from 2004 and the second is from the Celine period and you can see how Phoebe has stuck to a certain aesthetic. The sweater, the loose trousers. And it looks comfortable, no? I think one thing I’ve always loved about Philo’s Celine is how it usually looks comfortable.

It’s okay to deviate. OK I know it’s unfair to post a pregnancy photo but when I was looking through Philo photos this is the one that stood out to be as quite different in terms of style. It’s a beautiful top but I’ve never really seen her wear anything like this again and it does look a little dated compared to the rest of her looks (aka, what I wear to mommy and me class present day). But I thought it was charming because we all have days when we experiment, and maybe we even look back and wince a bit, but even the one of the greatest designers has done this herself! And looks thrilled! So let’s not be so hard on ourselves.

Navy and black = chic. I never understood why people say they don’t mix. Why not? It always look so good when I see it! I have a Chanel jacket that has both so I always wear it with black pants (or leggings, ahem, sorry) and feel happy and a bit less boring because I’m not wearing all black.

Outerwear is great (as are sweaters). I have a major outerwear/sweater problem and I have decided to just embrace it because there are few things more beautiful in a wardrobe in my opinion than a gorgeous coat. Or a super comfortable sweater. And there are so many kinds! The leather jacket. The tuxedo jacket. The suede coat. The furry coat.

Some final thoughts…another reason why the “new” Celine was upsetting is I was just thinking about buying a Celine bag and when I was in the boutique, the sales associate told me that “I should buy the bag quick, they’re going to get rid of them, everything is going to change,” which is irritating. It would be one thing if I felt that they would still stand by their product…but I kind of got the feeling that a year from now, if there was a problem, bringing my bag back might get me treated like old news. Who knows what the boutique would look like by that point…all black with a strobe light flashing about. Which is kind of how Hedi’s Celine collection seemed to treat Phoebe’s legacy. Of course he’s just doing his job…and the market has dictated that he is worth a certain $$$ and I’m sure he’ll increase sales. But as for me, I went back to Hermes as usual instead of shopping at Celine. And bought a little something and took it home and felt good about it…which I’m sorry to say, isn’t how I’ll feel anymore about Celine.

What do you think about the old vs new Celine?