By Michelle Crowe
YSL 1989 Love Poster
February, for all of its dreariness, does bring along a welcome sprinkle of hearts and delightful expressions of L-O-V-E. Thankfully, designers have a long and endearing history of working both into their collections, proving that even the most world-weary sophisticates have a more than a little love in their hearts.
Yves Saint Laurent and muse Lou Lou de la Falaise. Are those heart earrings?
Yves Saint Laurent famously played with hearts and the word love throughout his career. Hearts adorned his clothes, his annual papercraft Christmas cards and LOVE poster, and, of course, his fragrances and their campaigns. I’ve saved a bottle of “In Love Again” for decades, carefully packing it in tissue and bubble wrap when moving from spot to spot. It’s just too charming to ever be Kondo’d out of my collection.
Mouina wears the couture heart.
How wonderful that the ideas of peace and love were so often woven into his collections. I love the story of the articulated heart created of diamonds and rubies for the wedding dress that model Mouina wore to close the spring 1983 haute couture show. This divine showstopper would be incorporated, talisman like, into the bridal looks of the bi-annual shows that followed, never upstaging the exquisite gowns, only enhancing them.
It was replicated in crystals, collected and worn by the chic and stylish to this day because like my bottle with the perfectly imperfect heart, who would ever part with such a treasure?
Blazers with hidden hearts on the runway in 1983.
Saint Laurent was said to have been inspired by Elsa Schiaparelli’s work. Schiap’s brilliant surrealist outlook sprinkled heart motifs throughout, including on the box of her fragrance “Shocking.”
A sketch of a 1986 look of a simple blouse and skirt with patchwork hearts.
Anthony Vaccarello works hearts into modern Saint Laurent collections and some of our current favorites don’t shy away from adding a heart to sleeve, bag or vamp of a shoe. Marc Jacobs, Miuccia Prada, Charlotte Olympia and Tory Burch have charmed many with their clever and charming love-kissed collections.
Wishing you a February filled with love, hearts, and peace.
