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06/02/08

Text: Stacy Saunders

Yves Saint Laurent was certainly a man ahead of his time in many regards, and we'll only unearth more of his eccentricities, uncover more of his mysteries, and delve deeper into his psyche in the years following his unfortunate passing on June 1, 2008 at the age of 71.

While we praise the YSL label for its solid collections and sex appeal carried on by recent YSL designers Alber Elbaz and Tom Ford, the brand was founded over 40 years ago with these same aesthetic ideals, in a much different time. In the early 1960's Yves Saint Laurent gave women something they needed: power, sex, and confidence, in the form of beautiful clothing. Like the the 80's power suits that came later, his clothing made women feel modern in a way they had not experienced through dressing, and this is what set him apart.

Master of the well-made, androgynous and covertly/overtly sexy, Yves Saint Laurent will be remembered for his originality and forward thinking brand.

In remembrance of perhaps the most talented mind in fashion from the past 50 years, a few reasons we will miss YSL.

1. Le Smoking pantsuit: 1966 or 2066, a classic. Nothing is sexier than a woman in a tuxedo jacket, buttoned down to there...

2. Safari jackets: Who thought European imperialists' 19th century garb would be re-imagined as trendsetting a hundred years later?

3. Thigh High Boots: Saint Laurent slipped us into these decades ago, and we've never been able to let go.

4. Rive Gauche (the Ready-to-Wear line): In accordance with one of the designer's more notorious quotes, "We must never confuse elegance with snobbery."

5. His muses: Catherine Deneuve, Lou Lou de la Falaise.

6. Opium perfume: With its iconic ads and controversial origin, love it or hate it but this scent is still going strong.