Bally marks 160 years of excellence in leather craftsmanship with stylish and modern design this year. The importance was symbolized by the opening of a Bally store in Times Square recently with a preview of the SS2012 collection. The new store occupies a space of 335 sqm and highlights the brand’s understated elegance and timeless beauty, showcasing the complete women’s and men’s AW2011/12 Collections including shoes, bags, leather accessories and ready-to-wear. The new store concept supports Bally’s principle of creating spaces that evoke a sense of calm, achieving a warm and relaxed environment. The process starts at the facade which engenders a strong public image that leads inside with harmonious synchronicity. The facade’s window displays are created to showcase the Bally product at eye-level focusing on the luxurious shoes and accessories. A bronze frame gives way to a contrasting white illuminated logo that is visually strong and powerful. Once inside, the store’s warm and natural colour palette is contrasted against light and dark surfaces which showcase the collections in perfect harmony.
The Bally SS2012 ready-to-wear collection explores a modern romance in which streamlined sportswear silhouettes meet precious, petal-strewn fabrics. Fusing Bally’s 160-year-old heritage of leather craftsmanship with a sense of Switzerland’s landscape and traditions, plus images of a debutante in lace with Karlheinz Weinberger’s photographs of 1960s working-class teenagers, joint creative directors Michael Herz and Graeme Fidler have created a unique contemporary aesthetic for the brand, based around the notion of unexpected juxtaposition. Laser-cut air-soft leather simulates perforated sports mesh in knee-length coats of meadow green, glacier blue and gentian yellow; simple A-line day dresses are crafted from hand-embroidered lace and cotton jersey t-shirts are inset at the shoulders with padded leather motorcross panels. New this season is a three-dimensional print effect using embroidery and appliqué, painstakingly applied by hand. Embroidered leather swirls, sequin-embroidered tulle, and geometric crystal shards embellish two-dimensional printed fabrics to create a textured landscape.
Shoes are at the heart of Bally’s luxury leather heritage, and techniques in modern leather craftsmanship have seen Herz and Fidler take their initial inspiration of a cat’s-cradle-like sandal on Bally’s 1951 centenary poster and rework it into a series of barely there pieces that recall the barefoot debutante. Every heel height is present in sandals that range from blush-hued high heels with crocodile platforms to rose-red kitten heels and sorbet-coloured slides, while leather is engineered into cord-thin laces and plump, filo-rolled straps that elegantly encase the foot.
The Men’s SS2012 Collection captures the spirit of a relaxed European lifestyle reminiscent of the late 1950s, when first-class travel to chic destinations was a luxurious experience enjoyed by the most dashing of men. As individual style began to find its place in the late 1950s and early 1960s, men began experimenting with different materials to express their personal flair. Inspired by archive pieces from the era, the look of Bally’s SS12 collection is light and comfortable yet handsomely well-groomed: from the easy going feel of the new deck shoe range, to the soft Sea Island cotton knitwear, and the carefree bags and accessories, every piece suggests an effortless summer lifestyle of languid luxury. Along with the new deck shoe range, Bally introduces the new lightweight Scribe Legere. Featuring a new archive sole from the 1950’s that has been completely redeveloped with extremely light and flexible exclusive Goodyear construction, the Scribe Legere is perfect for a season of summer wear. In addition, the already successful sneaker range has been extended to include a wider choice of shapes, materials and colours and a new deck shoe range has been added, all adding to the collection’s overall mood of simply luxury.
The SS2012 Resort Collection reflects the relaxed lifestyle of a summer spent at Switzerland’s exclusive lakeside playground of St. Moritz. Whether it’s lunching at the Suvretta House Hotel’s Grand Restaurant or a summer evening spent at a magnificent opera show, each is an inspiring moment that expresses the mood of this resort collection. With its blend of clean lines and understated elegance, the collection reveals a sense of highly desirable, sublime luxury and relaxed sports chic. The beautiful Lucerne collection of shoes and accessories whose simple lines and romantic curves reflect the Bally archive. Available in soft plain and perforated nappa leather, white is trimmed with whisky and chocolate is trimmed with white while sea blue, nettle green and navy are all trimmed with sea foam. Leather is the focus of the uber-chic ready-to- wear collection. Revealing a new silhouette jacket and skirt in all white leather, the spirit is youthful and smart. The casual throw of an outerwear piece worn with a stunning little cotton dress has effortless appeal; trousers cropped at the ankle highlight the shoes; and a cross check print in navy and coco silk finished with navy leather is timelessly beautiful.
No comments:
Post a Comment