PARIS--As I stood under a doorway at Couvent des Cordeliers, the ancient convent in which Isabel Marant held her Spring 2011 runway show, a crowd gathered outside huddled under umbrellas, waiting to enter. Like me, most of the women were wearing Isabel Marant: her classic grey sweatshirt, a tunic, a pair of boots. Unlike me, they were predominantly French, and predominantly cool, mostly because of the way their messy hair was tied up in effortless chignons, and the ease of their sweatsuit ensembles. Isabel Marant's clothes embody the modern, cool French woman. And that's why she's been such a success in the US. Marant, Vanessa Bruno, Paul & Joe...these are all brands we Americans covet because they allow us to emulate French chic. We're obsessed, even if our blowouts and J Brand jeans do give away our true nationality. Ironically, Marant's spring collection was dedicated to a certain American era: The early '80s days of hip-hop, when girls wore shrunken baseball jackets, hoop earrings, and mesh netting. Mixed in with these heavily-influenced looks were more classic styles, including a few rugby dresses and some calico floral frocks.

• By Lauren Sherman
  Oct 2, 2010

For Spring, Marant gave her loyal followers plenty to be inspired by, turning out one of the more fun and cohesive collections I've seen from her in a while.

• By Lauren Sherman
  Sep 28, 2013

The Isabel Marant girl is just the coolest. So cool that the models came to the show wearing Marant before they walked in it on the runway. And of course, only A-list girls on this runway--Abbey Lee, Joan Smalls, Arizona Muse, Anja Rubik, the list goes on. Le sigh. Next spring you'll be coveting chunky knit pullovers and mini dresses, graphic printed and patchwork colored denim, varsity jackets, and tie dye everything. In addition to the varsity jackets, the show definitely had an American-hip-hop-athletic vibe--perhaps an acknowledgment of the cult following Marant has in the US.

• By Leah Chernikoff
  Oct 1, 2011

The designer's usual French-girl chic was front-and-center, though there was a move toward more sculptural shapes -- along with a play on grunge and military -- that looked pretty damn intriguing.

• By Stephanie Trong
  Mar 1, 2014