Blue Gold

Taiwan's press has discovered the new fashion, and it's jeans, or more generally, denim. During my most recent stroll through Taipei 101, I discovered Christian Dior's take on the blue cloth: a combination of their recent logo - the word Dior cropped closely together - with the color orange. And a winning combination it is. I find it the most attractive motif since Louis Vuitton's monogram and its Takashi Murakami-inspired variations. They've applied it not just to dresses, also to bags. The only odd or off thing about the Dior pieces though, is that plastic-looking orange tag that hangs from the bags. It looks too cheap in comparison with the "old," more traditional metal CD letters. And then there are the long orange stockings with the name Dior in white.
In Taipei, the Dior orange and denim collection seems to be the preserve of the Taipei 101 store. At the Regent Gallery, under the Grand Formosa Regent, there is no trace of it in the windows. At nearby Chanel's, the bags show cartoonish maps of Paris in pastel colors. Also original, but less to my taste, and unlikely to survive as a main motif.
Back to denim, Louis Vuitton of course also has an attractive collection, combining its monogram with the various shapes and sizes of bags it is famous for. Even some of Taiwan's top designers have joined the denim drive, with Demos Chiang - a designer of everything from rings to watches - presenting bags and jeans in the blue gold of today.