RUNWAY: Balmain SS12

Olivier Rousteing's debut collection at Balmain, after the disappearance of Christophe Decarnin, was widely successful. The military theme that Decarnin favored both in his mens and womens lines for Balmain were still present in this lookbook for SS12. However, the collection felt much younger, this could be attributed maybe to Rousteing, he is only 25 years old. Though the overuse of the summer scarf may have been a bit overkill, they did soften the hard looks. The collection will definitely please Balmain client while may attracting new ones, albeit they can afford the astronomical prices.

It is worthy to note that aside from just being 25 years old, Rousteing's appointment as Creative Director of Balmain signaled a change in the fashion hierarchy, where designers of color are rarely head designers at big French houses. Bravo to Rousteing for helping to break that barrier and for a great debut collection!