Fall Fashion 2008 RTW

Oscar de la Renta's fall 2008 fashion show was truly inspiring. His clothing have always been elegant and feminine. This line was no different. Models walked up and down the runway to a crowd of oohs and aahs. De la Renta definitely maintained his place in the fashion industry.

The line consisted of 62 gorgeous pieces. He included day wear, cocktail, and evening wear. All pieces consisted of delicate ornamentation. Browns, grays, and blacks were the back drop for splashes of gold, amethyst, hyacinth, purples, fushias, and garnet red. Models wore thick black eyeliner with metallic shadows. Hair was either down and simple for the day or up swept for night.

For day wear, De la Renta "stayed true to tradition" (style.com). Jackets contained sharp, crisp shoulders. Skirts were knee length and feminine. Many of the pieces were trimmed in fur. Pants were also featured. Most were high waisted and wide legged.

Many day pieces included a great variety of jackets. There was a stunning boiled cashmere jacket with sharp shoulders and a fox fur collar over full cut flannel pants. A boxer jacket in cashmere knit also had a fur collar, but was paired with a chic dirndl skirt. There were tweed coats adorned in sable, along with checkerboard tweed. The black knee length shearling with gold embroidery was definitely a stand out piece. My personal favorite had to be the knee length brown herringbone fox fur. How can a woman resist fur?

The dirndl skirts were definitely to die for. They were dip dyed silk in various colors. My favorite one had purple tones with intricate flower patterns at the hem. However, the dresses definitely gave the skirts a run for their money. They varied from knee length tweed with flowing pleats and cap sleeves to checkerboard with drape neck and 3/4 sleeves. Most were paired with a suede point toe calf boot.

If you are not much for dresses and skirts in the fall, then the high waisted silk zibeline pants are for you. Feminine yet powerful, they definitely make a statement. The two that struck me the most were paired with very decadent blouses. One was amethyst in color with a black net overlay. The other was red venetian silk with a ruffle front.

As for day time accessories, De la Renta tells us that you can not go wrong with a Russian style fur hat. While I did not care as much for this accessory, it was paired with several of the pieces and did compliment the many fur collars well. Many pieces were also accented with belts. Thought most were thick, there were a few thin belts. They were mainly brown and black in color. Some were metallic, and most were of crocodile skin. Along with the suede calf boot, a pointed flat toe black patent pump was also paired with several pieces. The bags were also big, very typical of fall fashion.

The evening portion of the show was simply luxurious. It was dominated mainly by two types of pieces. The first were very understated black column dresses. The fabrics consisted of velvet, hammered satin, and silk crepe. The second were gala dresses. De la Renta presented us with strapless floral chiffon, black gowns with either a gold leaf motif or abstract brush strokes on the skirt. Also, for cocktail, he presented a stunning floor length purple silk skirt with the red venetian silk ruffled blouse, topped off with a thin black belt.

Other evening cocktail pieces consisted of chunky wrap sweaters. My favorites were again in purples. Some also had fur collars. A few of the sweaters were also buttoned pieces. Chunk turtleneck sweaters were also shown. My favorite was brown over a silk embroidered knee length skirt paired with a thick brown crocodile skin belt.

My absolute favorite piece of the evening collection was a black silk dress. The low cut v-neck was flirty, yet chic. There was an intricate gold bubble motif at the bottom of the skirt and the dress was belted at the waist. It was paired with a pearl and gold bracelet and open toe anklets. This is the dress to die for. The reason why De la Renta remains a top fashion icon.

The vast majority of the evening pieces were paired with a satin ribbon sandal. The heel was short, only about 1 - 1 1/2 inches with a kittenesque wedge shape. There was also a flirty bow around the ankle that was bejeweled with rhinestones. This sandal was also named as one of the top fall accessories by style.com, an on-line home for Vogue and W.

Overall, Oscar de la Renta never fails to please. His collection was magnificent. However, it is for the decadent lady. Not for one on a budget, or one who is worried about a possible recession. While it may not be feasible for all to own some of these amazing pieces, De la Renta reminds us that it it always okay to dream. As he said backstage, if he wasn't designing clothes he doesn't know what he would be doing. Well, we don't know what we would do without your clothing either. You always allow a woman to believe she should look like a queen. You always make us feel like a woman. Thank you!