It's Hammer Time at Paris Fashion Week


Fashion Week is in full swing over in the City of Lights, with some of the biggest fashion houses presenting their Fall 2013 collections. One of those designers is the heritage fashion house Balmain. Lately, Balmain has been all about embellished mini dresses and plenty of leather, and this season they sent a collection of totally rad, late-'80s, early-'90s-inspired outfits shuffling down the runway. And, like The Thread, they're having an epic bout of nostalgia. Big shoulders, puffy sleeves, and belted, lamé jumpsuits dominated the catwalk, and while the clothes were typically well-crafted and gorgeously rich-looking, all I could keep thinking was, "You Can't Touch This," and/or "Stop: Hammer Time." Balmain's big-shouldered leather jacket with an ostentatious gold belt and a head-to-toe gold lamé getup would have been right at home in one of MC Hammer's music videos circa 1990. The early '90s rapper and pioneer of dressing like a genie may have other things to worry about these days--he was recently arrested in Dublin, California after being pulled over in a car with an expired registration--but his iconic style rages on.


Personally, I've been looking forward to the death of drop-crotch pants (seriously, Justin Bieber: cut it out), but it looks like Balmain head designer Olivier Rousteing won't let go. There are just so many better trends from the late '80s and early '90s than these "Dynasty"-meets-MC Hammer silhouettes. What do you think? Would you wear any of these looks?