ALEXANDER WANG FOR BALENCIAGA

Finally, after weeks of speculation, it's been as good as confirmed today that Alexander Wang will be the new creative director of Balenciaga, replacing Nicolas Ghesquière at the esteemed French fashion house.

Can I get a HELL YEAH?!

Y'all will know by now that I'm a big fan of Mr Wang here on FFS - or you SHOULD, I harp on about him enough! Although I've been aware of Alexander Wang since 2007, my full-blown obsession started when I picked a coveted Rocco as part of my Net a Porter prize in 2010... What arrived on my doorstep was a piece of expertly crafted, sporty, edgy, hard-wearing pistachio leather with studs and pockets and ALL KINDS of buttery-soft goodness, and that was it... LOVE! Not just for the bag but the brand. And the guy himself, too - just look at his wee smiling face! Adorbs!

So why will he be a good fit at Balenciaga - a formidable, somewhat elitist luxury French fashion house? Because for the past few seasons, it's almost as if previous creative director Nicolas Ghesquière has been paving the way for Wang to come in and set up shop. Balenciaga has been moving towards an edgy, contemporary look with clean lines, exquisite construction and tailoring for a number of collections, and that's what our man Wang does best. Example:

SS07 

Pre Fall 2011 

AW12 

SS13

See? And here's a few snaps of Balenciaga's latest collection for SS13. Hopefully you'll see the similarities... Essentially, to paraphrase Cher from Clueless, I'm hoping you can see why they would, like, MESH WELL together.

Do you see what I'm getting at? It's not even that they're similar so much as I can see a progression from one to the other. Wang will have to adapt and step it up, that's for sure, but he can also relax in the knowledge that no-one will be stepping on his famed edgy, street-chic vibe any time soon.

What else will Balenciaga gain from having Wang at the helm? Well, an unrivalled focus and attention to outerwear, hunners of uber-cool fangirls (models and celebs included), credibility from the YOOF, and, ultimately, massive sales. Alexander Wang has always excelled commercially - something I'm sure Balenciaga can now expect to cash in on.

Also, is it weird that I feel sort of PROUD? I've followed Alexander Wang since he started his own label in 2007 at just 23, and I guess this decision feels like a validation of success through sheer talent - something it's hard not to be pumped about.

So, yeah, ON YERSEL, Alex! Huzzah!