Move over Rodarte sisters, Jean Paul Gaultier is taking over everyone’s favorite store and the wait is finally over. On Sunday, March 7th, Gaultier’s collaboration with Target will be available in 250 stores nationwide.
But with rumors of the line not being confirmed until October of 2009, the buzz may have been bigger than the line itself. Consisting of 20 looks, the line will only be available in a fraction of Target stores for about 5 weeks (until April 11th). If you don’t happen to live near a chosen location, don’t fret; thank God for the World Wide Web.
Gaultier is following in the footsteps of several designers including the late Alexander McQueen and Anna Sui. The series of designer collaborations has inspired a cheap-chic movement, allowing the average American woman to feel of a higher status without breaking the bank. Each designer has been inspired by a certain fashion icon or muse to distinguish their lines from the rest.
So who will Gaultier’s line represent? According to Target, the line will pay tribute to the American woman, and reflect style of past and present pop culture. Infamously known as Madonna’s costume designer, we would expect Gaultier to produce variations of corsets, crazy colors, and God willingly a pointy-bra in the collection. Also, as one of the first designers to introduce innerwear as outwear into mainstream fashion, elements of this style were shoe-ins to the collection. Or so we all thought. Much to everyone’s surprise, none of the looks reflect anything of Madge status, and there are no signs of structured innerwear anywhere, which Gaultier has been showing on the runways for seasons.
Instead, the collection features classic patterns of stripes and checkers in variations of dresses with little to no structure. Each “look” consists of about three different pieces that seem plain or “done before” when pulled apart from each other. The only piece that represents Gaultier’s aesthetic is the “mesh tattoo-print leggings.” However, instead of translating to edgy street-style, they look cheap and cheesy. If paired with the wrong dress, they may even come across as trashy. Some of his graphic t-shirts are interesting, but are no different than t-shirts found in any other mass-market retail store.
As far as price point, while the collection is affordable, it is not cheap by any means. The cropped leather jacket is priced at $200 (!!), and is not substantial enough to be a staple in any wardrobe. For the rest, each item does not seem expensive (typically $30-$60), but to create each look as they are being presented, you would have to purchase about three pieces. According to my outstanding math skills acquired in Calculus, this means that each outfit is roughly $100 or more.
Even if Jean Paul Gaultier is printed on the tags, it may not be worth it. Take a look and see yourself!
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