'Marlene Dietrich. She was phenomenally glamorous. And Garbo was unbelievably glamorous -- her masculinity and femininity at the same time. That was probably my first recognition of what style was about. She was like a sleek car," Narciso Rodriguez says.
It is the end of my interview with the fashion designer, who was in Toronto this month to promote his new fragrance. But it wasn't until lighting on the topic of iconic glamour, that he became animated. "And Joan Crawford. I loved Bette Davis and it drove my family crazy. She was just so soulful, and her simplicity . . ." He trails off.
In the past 12 months, Rodriguez has launched a fragrance, taken home the women's fashion designer of the year award from the Council of Fashion Designers of America, and rocked the fashion world with some killer clothes.
Glamour à la Rodriguez, however, is not about flamboyance.
Consider the work of this only son of Cuban-American immigrants, the antithesis of the fashion world's Roberto Cavallis and all of that leopard, flash and in-your-face fur.
"I think glamour today is much more pragmatic," the New York-based, New Jersey-born designer says. "It's more accessible. Women today have more options. There isn't the image of a thirties glamour queen that women try to emulate. I like things that are glamorous but quite pure and not fussy."
Hollywood's current A-list has a soft spot for the charming, soft-spoken designer. Sarah Jessica Parker, Salma Hayek, Rachel Weisz, Angelina Jolie and Clare Danes are all fans, and have all graced the pages of Vogue wearing the designer's pretty, clean-cut clothes.
One of the most refreshing things about Rodriguez's work is his consistency. Since graduating from Parson's School of Design in New York, he has honed his own brand of cosmopolitan tailoring at such high-profile houses as Anne Klein, Calvin Klein and Tse Cashmere. And it was a woman of great pared-down elegance who helped launch his career: Who can forget that bias-cut Narciso Rodriguez gown worn by the late Carolyn Bessette Kennedy for her wedding in 1996?
One is reminded of that lovely dress when looking at the designer's fluid floor-length creations for the current season.
"It's more cutting-edge than Armani, but it's in that price range," says Mark Gould, a buyer for Millis boutique in Hamilton. "Rodriguez takes more chances and that makes it more difficult to sell," he says.
But its a versatile line, the buyer for the near 40-year-old store says. "It works well with other collections." A Narciso Rodriguez jacket, for instance, adds modernity to a client's existing wardrobe in one easy step.
Rodriguez's newly launched fragrance, Narciso Rodriguez For Her, carries forward the designer's theme of rich simplicity. The juice itself is a surprise. It's pretty -- the first impression is of orange blossoms, vanilla and amber -- but a rich centre of musk lies beneath. It's a serious and sexy scent, ideal for candlelight.
The perfume's earthy core was, in fact, the starting point for the perfume itself. When he was a teenager, a fashion designer friend gave Rodriguez a bottle of Egyptian musk. Since then, it has become a signature: Rodriguez wears it on his skin, in his hair. "I sort of shower in it," he confesses.
The new scent comes in a no-frills geometric flask, blackened on the inside like an old snuff bottle that the designer picked up years ago in an antique shop. In that, it's the perfect extension of the brand.
"Because," Rodriguez says, "I just don't like excess. I feel uncomfortable with it."
Narciso Rodriguez's fashions call be found at Giorgio Femme and Ursula B in Montreal (514-282-0294); Giorgio Couture in Toronto (416-944-2600); at Millis in Hamilton (905-527-1531); and at Holt Renfrew across the country (1-866-465-8736).