Ayyix1: Oscar de la Renta Fall 2011 Collection

In which T & Lo are rendered a little slack-jawed.

You know, Fashion Week had a lot of magical and exciting moments for us, but the true capper of the week, the fashion cherry on top of our Fashion Week sundae, was without a doubt, the Oscar de la Renta show. Before it even started, we were on Cloud 9: chatting on the way in with Joe Zee, Creative Director of Elle, who in turn introduced us to Robbie Myers, Editor in Chief of Elle, who is incredibly gracious. Joe Zee is just on another level. Ridiculously sweet and friendly guy. We also chatted with Ariel Foxman, Editor of InStyle (with whom we'd done the twitter on occasion) and none other than Mr. Brad Goreski, who we've interviewed several times but only met in person this past week. The crowd at the venue was a small, and ridiculously stylish and well appointed collection of fashion editors and press from around the world. SEATED 4 ROWS DIRECTLY BEHIND ANNA WINTOUR, we shook our heads at the surrealism of it all, and settled in to watch the show.

As some of you know, we've been tweeting each of the shows we've been attending, doing what we can to describe each look, as well as the tone of the show in order to make it feel like you're sitting there with us. About a minute into the show, we had to just stop and stare, tweeting totally forgotten. There are clothes; there is fashion; and then there's FASHION. This was the closest thing either of us have ever seen to actual couture in person. Clothes so breathtaking as they're passing mere feet in front of us that there may have been - we're not saying one way or another - but there may have been tiny little crystaline tears at the corner of the eyes of certain bitchy gay fashion bloggers.

Everything is luxurious and rich, colorful and textural. The inspiration is Russia and the Near East, and you can see that in the prodigious use of fur, the layering and shapes, as well as the rich patterns and textures that evoke everything from Siberia to the Ottoman Empire. It would be hard for us to pick a favorite look, but if we had to, it would be that strapless paisley patchwork sequined gown in all those brilliant colors. Just breathtaking. Have we mentioned the colors, kittens? The sumptuous reds and greens; the brilliant blues and golds? Gorgeous. And always of the highest taste and sophistication. That's the Oscar de la Renta aesthetic: sumptuous good taste. What makes this collection even more interesting is that it feels to us like the first Oscar de la Renta collection in a while that's pushing against the limits of the line. There's just a little more of everything this time around; a wider use of materials, a broader range of silhouettes, it almost feels like the Old Master is stretching his muscles a little and showing what he can still do. Well, mission accomplished. We were floored.