Street Style Four Ways

Now that New York Fashion Week has ended, it's London's turn to showcase where they believe fashion is heading next. Admittedly, I'm a little behind in viewing all of the collections, both for NYFW and what has been presented so far in London. What I'm a little more interested in lately is what those attending the shows will be wearing. With the meteoric rising of personal style blogs, what you see worn at the shows is now as important as what you see presented at the shows themselves. Of the four major fashion capitals (New York, Milan, Paris, and London) London is in my mind always the leader when it comes to whimsical, original street style. Here's my assessment on all of the four majors:

LONDON: Check out blogger Phil Oh's excellent photos for Vogue from the opening days of London Fashion Week to get an idea of what puts London street style in a class unto itself. You have bright colors, patterns (even the banana-printed Prada that I thought would be impossible to wear!), mohair heels, creative hairstyles, neons, high and low looks, dressed up versus dressed down styles, and eccentric hair pieces. I just feel that London street style is all-inclusive and all-out adventurous. You can really only pull off some of these looks in London. Looking a little weird or "out there" is never a problem and Londoners always seem to be following their own beat when it comes to fashion. Maybe that's part of why I always feel so at home there.

NEW YORK: This is the place for dressed-up head-to-toe black looks. Stylish New Yorkers tend to be more formal than other fashion capitals and usually way ahead of the trends. Bill Cunningham is always able to hone in on what's happening in fashion by photographing the emerging trends here. What's up next? There's definitely something happening with the length of the skirt, as evidenced by Mr. Cunningham's recent photos here. So New York.

MILAN: The Italians pull off high-wattage glamour better than anyone else. This is the country that gave us Valentino, Armani, Gucci, Versace, Prada, Fendi, and Pucci after all. The stylish Milanese take fashion a step further than merely being dressed up. It's all about the glitz here.

PARIS: Parisians know more about fashion than just about anyone else. Charles Worth may have been British, but Gabrielle Chanel was French. The look here is elegant, understated, chic with a capital "C," and sophisticated. The French seem to appreciate fashion history as much as they understand where fashion is heading. The work that Karl Lagerfeld produces for Chanel year after year is certainly indicative of this. It doesn't change much, but it always looks fresh and new. I don't know how the Parisians do it.

(The above photo wasn't taken in any of the four fashion capitals, but it's my absolute favorite street style photo.)