While cruising through what seemed like endless images of fashion ... Italian style ... I came across these items which I found interesting and valid as pieces but not as collections... see what you think ...
Showing posts with label MILAN COLLECTIONS. Show all posts
Showing posts with label MILAN COLLECTIONS. Show all posts
Monday, February 28, 2022
Sunday, February 27, 2022
Giorgio Armani fall women’s 2022
Even Mr. Armani has been bitten by the trend bug, BUT only I a very minor way, sort of like dipping one toe into it. This was not your run of the mill Armani runway cavalcade of suits, coats and jackets of every kind; this was a collection of softer yet closer to the body silhouettes that still speak to the DNA of the brand but perhaps one might say in a different dialect! As a colleague said to me .. he stepped out of his comfort zone a bit in this collection... and with few to no missteps.
Indeed, the color to own is rich and luxurious purple in assorted intensities and varying shades of grey. It is not often that Armani collections can be described as an itemy but this season his “lower halves” are rarely that important to the total look. Most of pants are full/relaxed as are the dresses. Wisely, he paid only obligatory attention to standard evening wear keeping it to a minimum but here the pants became the focus. I think I’d be safe to say that any dyed in the wool Armani client can have what’s new and mix it with her Armani of times gone by and no one would be the wiser.
As a whole it is an extremely nuanced collection that shows us why he is a master tailor with a bit more contemporary fare than usually his wont. I could never say I hated but I sure did like it ... not love but like... a lot .... especially given what his colleagues have put forth this season. He, as usual stands alone in his dedication and loyalty to the brand’s DNA no matter its permutation.
One last thing is that the viewer needs to take note that even the accessories have been dialed down!
Saturday, February 26, 2022
Bottega Veneta fall 2022
I must say that Matthieu Blazy has reframed his vision for the brand so that it no longer looks like comic strip characters and cartoonish accessories. Don’t get the wrong idea, this is a long way away from the “when your own initials are enough” days and Laura Montaldo. There are whispers of Tomas Maier in the collection BUT Blazy has most certainly taken the assertive stand that Bottega Veneta is brand focused on leather and in particular its use of their intrecciato technique. I’d say the collection is now skewed toward grown-ups of an undetermined age but with needs for both the classic and trend.
I do think there was a lot of repetition, a lot of filler and not a totally clear message in terms of silhouette. The thick platforms, the Wookie shoe and the overused over the knee boot should have been replaced by some fabulous shoes for both men and women. One of my biggest pet peeves, no matter the brand, is that a when you show evening clothes, why on earth do you show them with leather daytime bags when you have already used metallic leathers which would have been far better the pieces in presenting a total look. Plus, way back when, Bottega did the most exquisite low key woven satin minaudieres at a time when the only competition was Judith Leiber and hers were far more complex.
I’m not sure what the two shirt tail pieces were in terms of shirt? Dress? Tunic? And why just 2 of very similar fabrication? Another difficult moment occurs when leather dresses are either not properly fitted or using the incorrect grade/weight of leather which causes them to gap.
With all of
the nonsense that I found to be I guess that I found fault with, I’d much rather see the collection looking
like this than the cartoonish collections designed by his predecessor!
Friday, February 25, 2022
Versace women’s fall 2022
Where to start? Yes, there is tailoring, yes, there is color, and then it all just goes awry into forced sexiness. Skintight tube skirts and dresses, that “boned” midriff detail and that U shaped vest or whatever it is that seems to appear far too many times in far too many iterations. Lest I forget those club foot stilettos, the ghoulish makeup and the barely their lengths of so many pieces.
Looking at these images several times I came realize that the underpinnings killed many of the outfits as well as the proportions of so many more. No need for more puffers, no need of oversized boyfriend jackets/coats, no need for endless latex leggings on so many but what is needed is an editor’s pencil and more adherence to brand’s original DNA and not the DNA forged by La Signora; the difference being hers is blatant bordering on tasteless while Gianni’s was seductive and polished.
Sad that there are still tee shirts with verbiage on them STILL, sad that there are entire logo pieces STILL and sadder not to realize that now was the time to dial it down a notch or two as things have changed, people have changed and life has changed but apparently not chez Versace. Apparently, streetwear lives on at via Gesu! She managed to import so many of the ill-conceived looks of London and New York and brought them the Milan runway.
Just have a look at the way she looks and suddenly there appears the answers to many if not all of my questions!
Thursday, February 24, 2022
Prada fall 2022
Yawn! Talk about repetitious! Talk about unexciting... but good for them they will sell a jillion of those wife beaters and I’m sure more than their share of handbags and shoes... well the clothes... not so much.
Take away those web like paneled/banded skirts and dresses and you’re left with leather that looked thick and cheap, hairy or feathered armband coats, Annie Hall boyfriend blazers, some LBDs that look like they may have been made from bonded fabrics or of odd proportions and of course fingertip sleeved and massaged bombers! God bless bombers, they are the supposed fashion pieces ... AGAIN! Lest I forget the ode to Dior and the new look suit which looked like they weighed 50 pounds!
I don’t even want to read what the so-called pundits or the designers will have to say but I would like to say... I mean a film that is 40 minutes long and slightly more than half of it is people posing in their Prada as they arrive ... HUBRIS!!!! You know so many if not all of them were given those pieces and it is a freakin fashion show not a Hollywood premiere.
Credit where
credit is due is that the models were perfectly coiffed and made up, it’s just
too bad that the clothes didn’t live up to the look of the models
Wednesday, February 23, 2022
Alberta Ferretti fall 2022
Well, two collections in one day that signal that the Italians understand fashion... unlike 96% of designers in London and New York! Let me qualify and say they understand that this is a business and not an Instagram moment for likes ... this collection, in more than a few instances, contains covetable pieces that women can easily wear for years to come. I recently had a conversation with a colleague and asked where are the sarong skirts of the 80s and the wonderful dresses that were emblematic of that era? Well, I got my answer today ... they live in repertoire of Italian designers who are smart enough to know these are the clothes that will attract women of multiple generations.
Ferretti’s only deficit, to me, was the puddling droopy pants and a few too many evening gowns but again, easily forgiven when you look at this collection as a whole... great coats, dresses, pants, scarves, total looks, pieces, basic and flamboyant but infinitely wearable. Gee doesn’t sound like anything I might have written for any designer in New York or London save for Michael Kors.
I’m in love with the steely greys... the palette is dark but not dreary with hits of royal, camel, and various shades of purple and of course black. Chic but not over or under designed and pieces to be mixed and matched with the shop in the back of your closet that has been dormant for two years or more. This is a sensational comeback, I a way, for the brand which, in my opinion has been lost at sea for several seasons. The timing is perfect!
Fendi fall 2022
KUDOS to you KIM JONES! And Fendi
They set the bar high on the opening day of Milan and sent out a polished and well thought out collection that ignored all the dross that we have seen in New York and especially from London. This was a collection for real grown-ups who understand fashion and wasn’t to look slick, clean and wearing clothes that equate to their price tags. Kindly note that none of what we saw needed an instruction manual for how get into these clothes or why they exist
.Truth be told, no, I didn’t understand the mousseline separates which to my eye resembled bed clothes but once the tailoring made its appearances all that was quickly forgotten. Jones offered superbly finished and fitted tailoring with nary a droopy sloppy pant in sight nor a sloping oversized shoulder. Whether or not women will flock to wear and own... well that is up for grabs but what a refreshing moment to actually see a collection of this caliber presented in the way it was. I love that he used gloves, I love that every exit had a handbag and not a single logo on a garment!
Would I say that there were some outside influences that we have seen in times gone by ... well ... yes, but it doesn’t matter when it is reiterated with such painstaking attention to detail and actually looking new. Even the palette was easy on the eyes; Jones truly outdid himself and will certainly now truly be recognized as a very talented designer of great import and not just of hype!
PS... kindly
note that there is no black in this collection nor one evening gown which speaks to me that this designer is
not only talented but quite savvy!
Wednesday, October 6, 2021
SPRING 2022... Lessons learned
After 4 major fashion capitals paraded their designers’ newest creations, I thought I’d share what I learned after a seemingly more arduous and lengthier season of the fashion cycle:
· Designers should not speak as their
words rarely make sense with the work they present and if that isn’t bad enough,
they get lost in their own pseudo intellectual jibber jabber. The best idea would
be to shut up and just let the clothes do the talking!
· Apparently, most designers seem to think
or make believe that this pandemic is over and things shall return as they were
... of course that would be a gross inaccuracy as this pandemic state, while
not as severe as it was, is still with us and things will NOT go back to life
as we once knew it. Hence showing clothes as if it was just another spring season
doesn’t cut it unless one is in complete denial.
· Reviewers should be forced to offer
an opinion and not speak of venues, front rows, inspirations and
influencers. What ever happened to wearability,
salability, fit, merchantability and appeal?
· Heritage brands only exist in name (for
the majority) these days as so many designers seem to think they use the archive
but if that’s the case how come the clothes, they design have no recognizable
signature linked to that brand?
· Then we come to the definition or how does one design sexy without the obvious nudity, sheerness, second
skin dresses, tits and ass? Apparently,
it is defined only at its most base level by the vast majority of designers the
world over.
· Make no mistake there must have been a
memo sent to each designer that it would be in their best interest to show bare
midriffs, bra tops or bandeaus and my question when, if ever, did you see or
will you see women who can afford these collections baring those particular areas
of their body during daytime hours or for that matter in the evening and we are
not talking at the beach?
· Since politically correct and politics
have entered into the fashion world, I would like to know what is attractive about
squeezing a token size 14-16 or 18 into a size 10 dress so that she looks like
a sausage in a weenie skin? Are we supposed to think that this is fashionable
or that larger women have no mirrors in their homes and lastly how many of these
collections ever cut above a size 12 for production?
· Models have become wind up robots who
walk a straight line and exit ... no emotion, no extra bodily movement and
absolutely never a smile... in fact they look miserable in the clothes they are
wearing. While on the subject, what has happened to perfectly groomed models
with make-up and perfect hair as that too has fallen by the wayside. Last aspect
is staging which is haphazard at best... day clothes with evening clothes with
clothes of no discernible reason.
· The last issue I will address is
shoes... so many look at though they are wearing boxes or books on their feet
and if not, then skyscraper stilettos that hurt just looking at them.
I could keep
going but think I will end it here and you can add to the list if you are so
inclined...feel free!
Sunday, September 26, 2021
Giorgio Armani spring 2022
Imagine that!!!! We finally get to see a collection that was actually designed and doesn’t look like every other collection or a collection that is so over worked that it’s an abysmal failure.
This was a collection built upon the entire Armani vocabulary from his lexicon of Armani pants to every kind of tailoring he has ever done. For the most part the collection is easy, soft, moments of rigidity, ethereal, lighter than air and then of course it just wouldn’t be Armani if there was no navy blue for spring!
The palette is what you might call diluted/muted sherbet colors or the palest of pastels done up in everything from tulle to knits to day wear. It is difficult for me to be able to say I wished to see more even though there were certainly plenty of exits, but I did want more! It’s just so soothing and reassuring to know that there is still a collection that doesn’t scream look at me, look at me and instead offers up clothing that will make the Armani client salivate.
If I wanted to find fault it would be with some of the pant shapes and the amount of tulle but they are inconsequential faults when you look at this as a total collection ... AND, do take note that models SMILED and causally strolled the runway as if they were actually enjoying their moment instead of looking like some robot that was wound up to walk a straight line.
Friday, September 24, 2021
VERSACE SPRING 2022
Immediately after Gianni’s demise Donatellamamamia said I AM NOT A DESIGNER! By golly, she certainly knew her fate because she shames her late brother by attaching his name and legacy to collections like this one and so many before.
So, what do we have here: a few nice black dresses with scarf insets and embellishments, a few nicely tailored suits, a lot of hookerish looking pieces that serve no purpose in anyone’s life, tons of chainmail, lots of ugly shoes and hoo ha we have Dua Lupa! Maybe she comes to sell the clothes in all the boutiques!
Kindly note I refrain from mentioning the menswear having been a HUGE Versace customer personally and there isn’t one thing that even offers a glimmer of desire in this category.
Yes, we had lots of color, some pieces that might have been jackets and the shortest dresses around that guarantee the wearer to get lucky quick. There is a vast difference between a call girl and a nickel a blow job hooker under the highway. There is no remnant of the slick sexy razor-sharp Versace that existed during his reign; it’s been tossed aside or possibly totally forgotten.
Oh and that
tee short which showed up far too many times should have read Versace
Nightmares!
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