oh hello, new favorite.

There are a few reasons why, up until now, I have always (stupidly) thought of Valentino as being a really formidable, totally out-of-my-league fashion house.

1. This is lame, but on a season 2 episode of Gossip Girl, one of Jenny's storylines was that she stole one of her classmate's mother's dresses, and she found out after she took it that it was Valentino haute couture. The girls were all like, "Oooo! She stole the VALENTINO, that cost like $30,000!" This made me think, geez, I bet Valentino is only one of those super exclusive, regal fashion houses that mostly only make clothes for people attending galas and balls.
2. I saw this ad in a WWD Collections magazine, and it kind of looked intimidating:

   3. I was at Saks Off 5th (their outlet) and even the Valentino items marked down were around $2,000. Plus, they were formal jackets.

Looking back, I think I was kind of a wimp about Valentino. Seriously, I mean since when does an ad make me skeptical? There are stranger ones out there. Also, I figured that pretty much any good haute couture dress would be around that much, if not more. Then came the good part: I saw their Spring 2010 RTW. It's beautiful!

The shoes. The colors. The subtle florals and lace. (!!!) All the details, especially the sandals with fluffy things on the back. It's like Louis Vuitton's furry shoes but backwards and more delicate. This completely changed my mind about Valentino! I am now super excited for their fall show!

On a side note, the loss of Alexander McQueen today is a tragedy for the fashion industry everywhere. He was such a creative, unique designer who really put his life into his work. He will be missed.

photos from style.com