Kim Kardashian: The Style Icon We Never Knew We Wanted

By Fashionista.com

Kim Kardashian, the majority of fashion blogs will concur, has been looking phenomenal lately. And it all came to a head this week in Paris during the couture shows. For Stephane Rolland‘s presentation, Kardashian wore a revealing silvery silk jumpsuit and creamy wool jacket by the designer, paired with a Lorraine Schwartz diamond choker (see above). Out and about, she wore Givenchy. And Céline. And Tom Ford. Together (Instagram below). And let us not forget her afternoon with Azzedine Al-aï-a, during which he gave her a personal tour of his exhibit at the Palais Galliera (Instagram at bottom). For that, she wore a white Proenza Schouler blazer — the first look in their Fall 2013 collection — with a pair of black leggings and lace-up booties, which were undoubtedly designed by the legendary couturier who accompanied her.

While photographic evidence proves that Kardashian has been wearing many of the aforementioned designers for years — and that she attended the couture shows way back in the summer of 2012, long before she made an appearance in floral Givenchy at the Met Ball, and even longer before her daughter received handmade baby outfits from the likes of Phoebe Philo — there is something different about it this time around. Kardashian is having her Victoria Beckham moment. You know, the instance when Marc Jacobs declared his love for Posh Becks, and suddenly she wasn’t just a glorified WAG, but instead a fashion insider. What the industry doesn’t like to always remember is that there’s a fine line between what is grotesque and what is fashion. And Kardashian, in all her absurdity, has managed to cross over to the right side of that line.

 But it’s not only that Kardashian is being embraced by the fashion world. That’s certainly true. It’s also that we suddenly want to look like her, not just look at her. And by we, I mean my friends and colleagues. “I want her hair,” confessed a friend in Los Angeles, where she has plenty of other bottle blondes to get inspired by. “I would love nothing more than to raid Kim Kardashian’s coat closet,” declared Lucky‘s Elana Fishman earlier this year.

For me, I appreciate her poise. This is an odd thing to say, but Kardashian looks like she actually bought the clothes that she’s wearing. And she may have in some circumstances. But regardless, she owns them in a way most celebrities don’t in a time when “street style” is so obviously manufactured

And that means Kardashian has reached a turning point. Whether or not Kanye West, Carine, or whomever, is styling her day to day, I am uninformed. But it no longer matters. Nicole Richie still looked good after she and Rachel Zoe broke up, right? Whatever happens with Kim and Kanye, she’s gained our respect.

I’ve never been a follower of Keeping Up With the Kardashians. (I’m more of a TLC reality show girl.) But I do know that, as a country, we have been obsessed over this woman for nearly a decade. So she’s not going anywhere, except up. Could a legitimate clothing line — in the vein of The Row, or Beckham — be next? I wouldn’t bet against it.