Red's Tyler Riggs is very coveted for the Milan/Paris Shows FW08

At the women shows I look at the models. At the men's shows, I come with a magnifying glass seriously trained on the clothes. The clock's counting down to the FW08 men's presentations in Milan and Paris and this very specialized market-that of high end designer menswear - is in a very transitional place right this minute. Time was you knew what you would be getting well in advance when it came to "The Shows" . And what entertainment these shows would provide, Tom Ford's flagrant Gucci vs Miuccia Prada's highminded men's line. Raf Simons's art gallery perfect wauldrobe vs Galliano's flamboyant bucaneers. And then the piece de resistance. Hedi Slimane's rock inflected couture level work at Dior Homme. What clear identities they had then.
So what are the shows with the best advance billing right this minute? After being eclipsed by the perverse streamlining at Dior, the Prada suit has a lot of lost ground to cover. Oddly enough Ralph Lauren's return to Milan this season has high expectations building for the glimpse of some kind of spectacle, if not in terms of the looks which are sure to be conservative, then in terms of the show's production values. The revamp of Ferre, as previously mentioned on TI has the label whores (like us) drumming the thumbs in suspense.
Switching to Paris, Lanvin looms as the label du jour, though on a personal note except for some coats and the satin sneakers, the brand's fetish level is not compelling to me. Hermes is being touted by some label watchers as a big rising contender in the must-have label sweepstakes. A thought that would probably horrify them. But that's what you get for slimming down your silhouette. Dries Van Noten is rumored to be whipping up a dream collection, said to be radical in its softness. Galliano will be mad and extravagant and then will sell a dozen more news print longjohns the day after the show. (I'd buy in) The man however feeling the most heat this season has got to be Kris Van Assche. He can do whatever he wants with his eponymous line (Friday Jan 18th at 1.00pm, 85-87 Rue du Faubourg Saint Martin). But now that he's had had time...now that the Dior Homme showing is runway, not a presentation...given his haughty pronoucements as to what is and is not elegance, he is going to have a lot of eyes on him for this show. It must be annoying stepping into someone else's shoes while having to erase their shadow but talent is going to have the final say. One way or another. Now I wonder what shows might you be dying to see in Milan and Paris. Let's compare notes.