Fashion & Style: The Herve Leger by Max Azria Fall 2009 shimmered as models paraded the latest looks from the bandage dress king down the runway at New York's fashion week.

Make-up free, frizzy haired models with strong eyebrows parade figure skimming dresses down the runway for an audience of fashion lovers that included several celebrity fans with front row seats: Lucy Liu, January Jones and Sophia Bush.

From micro-mini lengths to just above the knee, Herve Leger by Max Azria continued its heritage of the bandage dress, using geometric details, different shades, sparkling accents, ruching stripes and other details to make the dress seen and worn around the world new and fresh.

Each dress had a touch of glam from shiny materials, whether it was from rhinestones, leathers or the fabric itself.

While the snug fitting dresses left little room for leg movement, a couple dresses, including a white mini dress with a flared skirt allowed models to move more comfortably, although the impossibly high stiletto platforms and boots had more than one model taking a spill onto the runway.

The overall collection seemed to be influenced by traditional fall colors and foresty-type images. A bronze hued background made a subdued backdrop for the parade of dark shades that went down the runways, singly and in combination. The shades included black, brown, deep green, dark mustard, gray and plum as well as bronze.

The bandage dresses also got 3-dimensional touches from some of the geometric shades of leather on top of the dresses, as well as fringed dress that added some fun movement to the streamlined forms and the overall combination of textures used in each dress.



Describing the new collection of signature bandage dresses, Azria said in his press notes, "Using iconic bandages and patch-working textures of velvet, boucle and snakeskin, we create the modern carapace for the female form."

"Exotic prints, metallic beading and woven techniques intensify the collection's primal sensuality," he added.

Although the bandage dresses have become Herve Leger signatures, they met with some of Fall's most popular trends through the cutout shapes that appeared on some of them. Animal skin shoes that covered much of the foot were also featured on all the models, as were heavy-looking boots ranging from the ankle to the knee. In the ongoing homage to 80s style, shoulder pads and square-shaped shoulder were also seen on several dresses.

The inclusion of jackets and some dresses with sleeves made them more wearable for real-world women.

Standouts from the collection included the mosaic one shouldered dress that closed the collection, as well as an asymmetrical, black long-sleeved form-fitting dress.

The luxurious French Herve Leger label was acquired by Max Azria in 1998 and has since become a favorite with women and celebrities around the world and the new collection is sure to be as popular as the past seasons.

For LxM Carly Zinderman
Luxury Fashion Insider