There was a whole lot of gorgeous happening on the runway this week, so obviously I could not choose one particular best collection or look. I’ve actually chosen 4 different collections as the best of the best. This post will cover Zac Posen and Oscar de la Renta’s collections; I’ll have plenty more to say later on about two other delectable designers, plus an additional post with a cornucopia of the best looks from many designers. But for now, let’s look at some beauty.

Zac Posen

Zac Posen Fall 2010

Beautiful from head to toe. I cannot get enough of this particularly talented model’s neverending legs and super-sassy expression. The dress is a unique shape and silhouette and it flows practically like liquid, and it keeps drawing your eye to different places without seeming overworked. I also appreciate when a designer lets their work stand for itself instead of over-accessorizing and distracting from the beauty and intrigue of this dress. It’s wearable but with a touch of intrigue, and this model is wearing the shit out of it. She puts the pose in Posen! (Yeah, I made a pun. You love it.)

Zac Posen Fall 2010

There is a lot to be said for simplicity with a twist. It’s a very spring dress for a fall collection, but not so much that it feels out of place. I just think this is incredibly sellable and wearable. I can’t imagine this not showing up in US Weekly’s “Who wore it better?” section, because every starlet is going to want to wear this everywhere she goes. The colors and the assymetrical panels are so simple but so beautiful, which is basically what Zac Posen is all about.

The Final Look

Zac Posen Fall 2010

Designers tend to choose very formal gowns or their most elaborate red carpet-worthy looks for the final look of their collection, but Posen has made an empire out of cocktail dresses instead of full-length gowns, so I think he was wise to stick with what he knows best. The print, the fabric, and the colors are unbeatable. The pink/red sheer stockings are delicious, if a bit unwearable. (I mean, I’d wear them, but I own an ungodly amount of brightly colored tights. Seriously, it’s weird.) I think this model is a bit too unattractive to be featured in the final look of the collection, but the dress fits her well and flows beautifully.

Oscar de la Renta

Oscar de la Renta Fall 2010

This is my personal idea of a perfect look. Over-the-top or avant garde hair and makeup are fun and can be a blast, but for a ready-to-wear collection, this is the look I love. Beautiful and wild hair, exaggerated street makeup (I actually prefer the face to be more bare, just emphasizing lips and eyes, but if I had those cheekbones, I’d paint them up too). And the dress is glorious – the color pops, particularly against the bare-bones background (another argument in favor of surrounding beauty with simplicity so the beauty can shine). Fabulous tailoring, with the rouching/wrinkling effect making her look more sophisticated instead of disheveled, which is a difficult thing to nail. And we don’t see a lot of long-sleeved dresses that aren’t sweaterdresses or shirtdresses or other clothing-dress hybrids. And as my sister Haley has pointed out about the late Alexander McQueen, it’s particularly impressive when a designer who is known for their extravagance (like McQueen and de la Renta) can nail a simple and wearable design. The Zac Posens of the world can rock simplicity, and others can nail the avant garde or ultra-glamorous, but someone who can do both is even more unique.

Oscar de la Renta Fall 2010

As my mother would say, That is a suit. I’d like to cut off the woman’s head, because she actually looks like a contestant on RuPaul’s Drag Race, but that jacket is exquisite – it would have gone into my Coats post, except for the fact that this is all about the look as a whole. The gloves (are they a part of the coat? If so, that’s awesome, if totally impractical), the tights (I NEED THOSE IN MY GIANT DRAWER OF CRAZY TIGHTS), and it just screams, I am a fabulous fall suit that you’d be an idiot not to want.

Oscar de la Renta Fall 2010

This deeply saturated, gorgeous blue color popped into several runway collections this year, and for good reason. It’s stunning. And the world always needs a dress draped in a new and interesting way. I’d nix the matchy-matchy purse, but that color really makes her glow.

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These weren’t my favorite individual looks overall, but these collections had the largest amount of designs that I loved (besides the two designers I’ll be blogging about later). My full list of the 15 best looks will be up this week.

Don’t take my word blindly. Check out all the beautiful pictures from Zac Posen’s collection and Oscar de la Renta’s collection at New York Magazine.