How many ways can you do a bandage dress? That is the million dollar question for designer Max Azria who has been at the helm of Herve Leger for the last few years. The answer for his Fall/Winter 2009 collection was one part classic and one part trend. Azria kept the silhouettes short and tight enough to instigate some serious carb-cutting, but also stayed with the New York pack on the tough sexy girl vibe with aggressive shoulder details, textured insets and a gray, black and brown palette. Curiously, some of the pieces came out like a runway to real way version of Gareth Pugh, and it was obvious that Azria was testing the wearability line for his customer base of front row types such as Lucy Liu and Joy Bryant, but as we saw when Beyonce donned a Pugh original, pushing the envelope can be a refreshing thing.

Herve Leger, Fall/Winter 2009

(photos: Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week)

FRONT ROW

COLLECTION