The 25 Best Fashion Editorials of 2011
It happens every year: Our ever-growing pile of fashion magazines inches higher with each passing month, and by the time December rolls around, we can barely sift through the hundreds of stylish images we bookmarked for inspiration. 2011 was no exception, and in a year that celebrated retro supermodels, androgyny, vivid colors, and plenty of experimentation in the beauty department, choosing our favorites was particularly difficult.
The best editorials of the year ran the gamut from huge ensemble casts of blue-chip models styled by greats like
Vogue Italia, January 2011
Editorial:The Power of Glamour
Photographer: Steven Meisel
Stylist: Karl Templer
Models: Arizona Muse, Freja Beha Erichsen, Fei Fei Sun, Kinga Rajzak, Sessilee Lopez, Herieth Paul, Anais Mali
Why we love it: No-holds-barred elegance has always been Vogue Italia's forte, and this editorial doesn't disappoint. Meisel and co. created a scene that harkens back to midcentury designers' small presentations in their ateliers, which really makes Tom Ford's private approach to fashion week seem like a pleasant alternative.
RUSSH #38
Editorial: Babes
Photographer: Benny Horne
Stylist: Stevie Dance
Models: Bambi Northwood-Blyth, Hannah Holman, Lisanne de Jong, Abby England, Meag West
Why we love it: If you recast the Lisbon sisters in The Virgin Suicides with five of the year's biggest up-and-coming models, this is what you'd get.
Vogue Paris, February 2011
Editorial: Et Vogue l’Été
Photographer: Mario Sorrenti
Stylist: Carine Roitfeld, Emmanuelle Alt, Jane How
Models: Daphne, Daria, Freja, Joan, Lara, Natasha, Sasha, Saskia
Why we love it: The saturated colors, super-sized props, the best of Spring 2011 ready-to-wear, and some really stellar casting. Plus, it was Carine's last hurrah!
Vogue China, March 2011
Editorial: Child in Time
Photographer: Willy Vanderperre
Stylist: Nicoletta Santoro
Models: Lindsey Wixson, Hailey Clauson
Why we love it: This youthful spread celebrates its teenage stars—the teddy bears, balloons, socks with sandals, and Crayola brights make us wish we were 15 again.
Vogue Italia, March 2011
Editorial: Wasted Luxury
Photographer: Steven Meisel
Stylist: Panos Yiapanis
Models: Julia Saner, Milou van Groesen, Saskia de Brauw
Why we love it: Mixing ornate scenery with ultra-modern fashion, Vogue Italia creates a perfect mix of serious and fun. And there are pom-pom headpieces.
T Style, Spring 2011
Editorial: Flirt in a Skirt
Photographer: Walter Pfeiffer
Stylist: David Vandewal
Models: Hailey Clauson
Why we love it: Pink hair and spring's most coveted pieces paired with some tongue-in-cheek prop styling—this editorial is equal parts silly and chic.
LOVE, Spring 2011
Editorial: The Logic of Taste
Photographer: Patrick Demarchelier
Stylist: Katie Grand
Models: Agyness Deyn, Britt Maren, Carmen Kass, Crystal Renn, Dree Hemingway, Hailey Clauson, Kasia Struss, and more.
Why we love it: It's Katie Grand at her best, taking cues from British street fashion and adding in some poise.
T Magazine Travel, Spring 2012
Editorial: Girl Overboard
Photographer: Cass Bird
Stylist: Sara Moonves
Models: Daria Werbowy
Why we love it: Because it makes us want to be Daria Werbowy. (More so than usual.)
Vogue, May 2011
Editorial: Chateau California
Photographer: Bruce Weber
Stylist: Grace Coddington
Models: Natalia Vodianova
Why we love it: Natalia Vodianova has a pillow fight at Chateau Marmont with Chloë Moretz, Elle Fanning, and Hailee Steinfeld, and that's only one of the photos.
Vogue Paris, June/July 2011
Editorial: Downtown
Photographer: Inez van Lamsweerde & Vinoodh Matadin
Stylist: Joe McKenna
Models: Sasha Pivovarova
Why we love it: I actually think it is better than early Madonna. There. I said it.
Numéro #124
Editorial: Wild
Photographer: Greg Kadel
Stylist: Bill Mullen
Models: Daphne Groeneveld
Why we love it: The beauty looks, the accessories, the styling, the neon colors—each element is crazier than the next. This should definitely be a contender for the funkiest fashion editorial of all time.
Muse, Summer 2011
Editorial: Wildflower
Photographer: Tim Barber
Stylist: Susan Winget
Models: Bambi Northwood-Blyth
Why we love it: The feeling of a hazy California summer couldn't be captured more perfectly.
Vogue Turkey, July 2011
Editorial: Kalbim Ege'de...
Photographer: Sebastian Faena
Stylist: Mary Fellowes
Models: Dree Hemingway, Jon Kortajarena
Why we love it: A vivid, retro scrapbook of an insanely good-looking couple's romantic island getaway—what's not to love?
W, August 2011
Editorial: Planet Tilda
Photographer: Tim Walker
Stylist: Jacob Kjeldgaard
Models: Tilda Swinton
Why we love it: Sure, we generally worship the ground that Tilda Swinton walks on, but this editorial is noteworthy because it takes her strange otherworldly presence to the next level.
Vogue China, August 2011
Editorial: The Modern Mods
Photographer: Willy Vanderperre
Stylist: Nicoletta Santoro
Models: Raquel Zimmermann
Why we love it: 2011 was the year of the dominatrix, but no editorial managed to artfully combine sexuality, restraint, and a perfect maroon lip like this Vogue China one.
W, September 2011
Editorial: Transformers
Photographer: Steven Meisel
Stylist: Edward Enninful
Models: Aymeline Valade, Candice Huffine, Guinevere van Seenus, Jamie Bochert, Jessica Stam, Karen Elson, Linda Evangelista, Raquel Zimmermann
Why we love it:Ok, Meisel may have repeated this theme for
Vogue, September 2011
Editorial: Lofty Ambitions
Photographer: Alex Prager
Stylist: Elissa Santisi
Models: Anja Rubik
Why we love it: Photographer Alex Prager always creates a Hitchcockian mood of suspense, which is why this Vogue editorial featuring the blonde Anja Rubik is cinematic perfection.
Numéro #126
Editorial: Madone
Photographer: Sebastian Kim
Stylist: Charles Varenne
Models: Abbey Lee Kershaw
Why we love it: Abbey Lee as a warrior princess-slash-religious icon—pretty epic.
T Magazine Travel, Fall 2011
Editorial: Little Dutch Girl
Photographer: Angelo Pennetta
Stylist: Sara Moonves
Models: Lara Stone
Why we love it: As if we didn't love Lara enough, now we get to see where she and her impossibly perfect proportions came from! Her parents are adorable.
Tank, Fall 2011
Editorial: Kim’s World
Photographer: Viktor Vauthier
Stylist: Pandora Lennard
Models: Kim Noorda
Why we love it: It's one of the sweetest series of portraits we've seen in a long time.
Self Service, Fall 2011
Editorial: Arizona & Daphne
Photographer: Alasdair McLellan
Stylist: Suzanne Koller
Models: Arizona Muse, Daphne Groeneveld
Why we love it: Arizona and Daphne may have been among the most used models of 2011, but this editorial shows them in a new light - as the coolest mod-girls in the countryside.
Oyster, Fall 2011
Editorial: Lindsey the Legend
Photographer: Will Davidson
Stylist: Stevie Dance
Models: Lindsey Wixson
Why we love it: It's always a delight to see Lindsey come alive when she gets back to her small-town roots.
LOVE, Fall 2011
Editorial: We, the Mighty, the Brave and the Wise
Photographer: Boo George
Stylist: Anders Solvsten Thomsen
Models: Alessandra Ambrosio, Hannah Noble, Kate King
Why we love it: In 2011, a lot of people attempted to master the masculine-meets-feminine look, but this is the closest it came to perfection.
AnOther, Fall 2011
Photographer: Yelena Yemchuk
Stylist: Karen Langley
Models: Aline Weber
Why we love it:The luxurious seventies style of this editorial is worth emulating because it channels the era's gorgeous fashion without feeling "retro" or dated.
Wonderland, December 2011
Photographer: Elena Rendina
Stylist: Grace Cobb
Models: Charlotte Free
Why we love it: The mixed prints, the psychedelic backdrop, and the model's signature pink hair work together in perfect harmony.
