When you think of Monique Lhuillier, you think of show-stopping gowns, and in that respect, her Fall 2014 collection more than delivered. I love color for autumn, but unlike most designers, Monique typically offers color every season – and more often than that, bridal white. So in a way, the use of mostly grays and blacks this time around is even more intriguing. What little Barbie pink she did use was used incredibly well – on the interior of skirt with a high-low hem, in gorgeous floral embroidery, and best of all on my favorite look, a girly black gown with a petal-printed billowing train. It was like watching a wave of cherry blossoms fall in the moonlight.
Some of the other dresses felt too princess-y. Sure we’d all love to be royals, but how often can you get away with dressing like one? The volume of it all tends to overwhelm, and the same goes for the chunky sweaters, which seemed oddly out of place in the collection. I prefer her infinitely more wearable fitted silhouettes and unexpected embellishments, especially on the sexier fishnet and leather looks. Namely the skulls! The queen of princess gowns appropriated the macabre influence onto a printed neoprene dress and into the metallic embroidery of a bolero. Then there was the spider web beading, so stunning that I was reconsidering my arachnophobia all together! It’s safe to say that any dress that can do that has to be pretty impressive. Who knew Monique would be so at home on the dark side?
