One of the stock trends in any season are 'details' and fringe, for 2009, is one of the subheadings. Fringe cropped up two major ways. Both examples were part of two larger trends; that of bohemia and luxe. On the bohemia front we saw fringe from the likes of Miss Sixty, Betsey Johnson, and Karen Walker. In these cases fringe helped drive the inspiration home in the form of tasseled suede bags and vests. On the luxe side of things, and in the case of DKNY, Y-3, and Carolina Herrera, fringe was softer and applied to prints to give the garment another element of 'special' that would help make it undeniably luxe. In terms of bohemia, expect unabashed knock-offs from Forever 21 and the like, and in terms of luxe; likenesses that will pale in comparison. The whole point of luxe as a trend is that it cannot be made cheaper or more simply without losing some of its exclusivity and so it is in this context that we like the fringe trend best. This is fringe being pushed to couture standards and for that reason it is all the more stunning and unique. Rodarte, we think, articulated this best.

If only because it's about one hundred degrees and our heads are spinning at the prospect of not being half-naked. We've spent the majority of our day sweating it out internet cafe-style for the sake of wanting to live in the real world for a day, instead of looking at the cement walls that are undoubtedly the 'architectural highlight' of our Brooklyn office. It's nearing three in the afternoon and the only thing we can think about, to be honest, is online shopping and hair. Fall hair. Giorgio Armani's haute couture show is staying on our front page for the rest of the day, not only because of the clothing (which is surely reason enough), but because of that gorgeous hair. We know a lot of women are going short these days, that eponymous YSL Fall 08 haircut having convinced a lot of us that short is chic, and now it seems the updo's are moving in that direction as well. What can a perfect bob do aside from being its perfect self? It can go asymmetrical. That's right ladies, no need to haul that straight iron in your purse any longer. The tricks to this style, as far as we can tell, involve squeeky clean hair, a curling iron (or hot rollers), a paddle brush, some bobby pins, and a little bit of hairspray. Once we manage to cool down, we're going to try it out, and if you should be interested in doing the same, the goods are below.

Joseph Font's haute couture collection helped us complete our trilogy of DIY hosiery ideas. The first we picked up from our Network Partner, Style Bubble, who cut carefully spaced holes into a pair of tights as she saw them in a shop window. A few days later we saw Network Partner, The Coveted, dip dyed her tights so that they resembled those seen in the Christian Lacroix haute couture runway show. And now we've come up with our own idea for runway-worth hosiery you can whip up at home--the Joseph Font way. Perhaps those printed tights you've stocked up on over the season's are sitting in a pile in one drawer or another and have yet to be realized as having DIY potential. After all, they've already so much going on. Well, whip out that glue gun and go to town. In Font's show, floral patterns were made couture by way of same-color stones. The result is intense eye candy, the kind that might just make passersby feel like they've taken hallucinogenic drugs. That's what fashion is for, right?! These tights are pretty wild but we're sure a couture-loving chicster or two will be up for the challenge. We can already imagine them worn with jean cut-offs and black Doc Martins. How nineties would that be?

It was light and beautiful, just as Valentino would have liked it. Alessandra Facchinetti's first collection since the couturier retired was, as far as we can tell, a complete success. Everything from the ultra-feminine gowns to the more sculptured daywear pieces to the signature Valentino-red dress finale, looked like what you would have expected had Valentino still been designing. This was, no doubt, a smart move for Facchinetti who we're guessing won't spread her wings for a while, if ever. As a former designer for Gucci, she's likely to understand the importance of keeping with tradition, especially when designing for one of the world's most well-known names in haute couture. This collection, as varied as was the color palate and range of silhouettes, was clearly about the embellishments. Each piece whether by way of soft pleating, layers, or embroidery, showed of the handiwork that is only possible in couture, making each dress a 'I'll only wear this once and it will be the best night of my life' Valentino dress. Or at least, that's how we imagine it.

Aw, look, it's Givenchy for she & him. The Givenchy Haute Couture collection might have been inspired by Riccardo Tisci's upcoming trip to Peru, but he gave a little wink to the monochrome pink look he showed just last week for the Givenchy menswear collection. Worn together, it would make quite the fashion statement. Whether he intends Givenchians to wear his clothing in conjunction is beside the point, the trend is now established and we'll surely be seeing the color and the monochromatic look building as the season's shows move into ready to wear.

The Givenchy haute couture collection also included a fashion trend we thought we'd seen the last of. Namely, capes. Whether stitched closely to the body or worn lose, Tisci pulled this native look into his collection, despite it having been a trend over-saturated in the mainstream. If we see capes still present next fall in the shop windows and on young fashionistas, will it mean we can thank Givenchy haute couture? Probably not. It's more likely that the trends at street level just cycle through a bit slower, but the presence of them in this collection certainly doesn't matters.