Dries van Noten Catwalk Fashion Show Paris FW2012

Dries van Noten delivered another piece of print-art yesterday with his fall 2012 collection. It was innovative, colorful, ultra-chic and real. The Belgian designer was inspired by historical Chinese, Korean and Japanese costumes he saw at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London. He photographed the garments for large scale prints which he cut into various pieces to create graphic blocks. So the side of a beautiful patterned oriental coat became the decorative motif for a skirt etc. The collection was ultra elegant with that typical Van Noten menswear touch which made it wearable and cosmopolitan.

Bonjour Paris!

Paris is the last destination of these international fashion week cyclus. The whole circus will land here today for another week and a half of fashionshows. We’ll keep you posted.

Round Up Milan Womenswear FW2012

Milan was all about beauty and redefining feminine presence. The importance of womanhood translated into powerful design. Reports noted clear, modern sensibility and elegance rooted in the classic past, but applied to today’s woman. From linear, architectural statements to rock and roll romance, from virtual princess looks, to pre-Raphaelite twists and martial arts references. Inspiration was well documented and there seems a clear wish to find the context behind these hybrid collections. Where New York mixed identities Milan reinforced them. We spotted impeccable tailoring, love for crafts and embellishment, sublime couture and a daring choice of materials inspired by the wish to tap into the duality of the 21^st century woman.

Prada was much more then just ORIENTALIST, with a vibrant collection with strong contrast and  sharp & graphic silhouettes. In these outfits we see a glint of the well spread oriental inspiration shining though with opulent, high tech embellishment. Marni also joined this direction.

 

Many designers explored a dark color palette, but the DARK VISION of Dolce & Gabbana was at the same time an Italianate vision of palazzo life. They showed, as Bottega Veneta and Aquilano.Rimondi did, a more costume message.

 

Sportmax explored details in martial arts dress forms and applied these to a TECHNO FORWARD collection, combining natural and tech materials with retro futurist flavor. As did Fendi and Max Mara.

 

Raf Simons at Jil Sander was one of the designers for whom it was ALL ABOUT BEAUTY, both impeccably tailored and meltingly soft. Bottega Veneta presented a more powerful woman, but also beautiful in every detail.

 

Missoni, Roberto Cavalli and Fendi showed their NATURALIST character by applying their masterful crafts to nature’s textures, weaving an urban wardrobe out of wood, stone, fur, tree bark, and mica-sparkled minerals.

Milan’s collections where strong, spirited and powerful.

Stylespot is a collaboration with Stijlinstituut Amsterdam

 

 

Streetfashion Milan Womenswear FW2012 Day 6

What are you wearing during the fashionweeks? Your Miu Miu-shoes, your latest Jil Sander-jacket or that vintage Gucci? Maybe we’ll spot you in Paris, Milan, New York or Amsterdam. During the fashionweeks we refresh our streetwear posts regularly. We don’t judge, we’re not the fashion-police, we just enjoy fashion and your own personal style. Next stop: Milan Fashion Week.

Gianfranco Ferré Catwalk Fashion Show Milan Womenswear FW2012

There were several really great aspects of the Gianfranco Ferre show today, inspired by Helmut Newton’s photography.

1. Designers Frederico Piaggi and Stefano Citron chose the most stunning shades, from deep emerald green to beautiful burgundy.

2. They opted for strong, architectural looks, which made the models look elegant and confident.

3. They, as did many other Italian designers, played with texture in a modern way.

With a focus on cut the designers created the most original, asymmetric looks. They emphasized the models’ waists by lines or belts and gave the girls more appearance by adding multiple collars.

Unexpected shapes and thick unflattering materials gave the collection a daring allure, which very well fits with today’s trends. Piaggi and Citron may be new at the Italian fashion house; with this collection they surely are on the right track.

Roberto Cavalli Catwalk Fashion Show Milan Womenswear FW2012

The fall-collection of Roberto Cavalli is, well, a classic Cavalli: glamorous and strong, with lots of leather and fur. It started with maxi fur ballgown skirts with sequin luxe T-shirts and feathered baseball caps all in one look. Then came elbow-length gloves and little puffy skirts on little halter dresses strewn with sequins and beads and more baseball caps to go with it all. It had a more grunge feeling then last season. The biggest surprise however, was Naomi Campbell who closed the show.

 

Giorgio Armani Catwalk Fashion Show Milan Womenswear FW2012

Giorgio Armani called his fall-collection ‘Easy Chic’. The refined tailoring stood for chic, the flat shoes for ease. The clothes pointed to menswear, but were designed with a light hand. Every outfit was topped off by a fedora, and vibrant orange and fuchsia ran throughout. Armani opened with sleek gray combinations and suits with tops in solid colors or graphic prints. He then moved to light pieces over  man-tailored shorts. Skirts were cut for ease of movement. The mix of all kinds of  textures and weights kept it interesting.

Dsquared Catwalk Fashion Show Milan Womenswear FW2012

It’s the dream of any teenage girl; going to her prom in a designer dress. A prom dress designed by Dean and Dan from Dsquared might not be her first option, but the duo sure proved they know how to stage a prom show, including disco balls and a live band.

Their high school prom designs were pretty much everyday clothes. Like cropped trousers combined with leather jackets. Or croc leather pencil skirts worn with mohair sweaters. And those camel colored pants mixed with a denim jacket. Or that toggle coat with leopard collar worn with a check shirt and tight jeans.

Like always at Dsquared the styling was playful and casual. Bright shades of green, pink, purple and yellow alternated each other in goofy streetwise looks topped off by eye-catching accessories.

Models had big sixties hair, pointed glasses, chunky necklaces, funky (odd-fitting) hats and big brooches. Some of them even smoked on the runway, as if to emphasize the rebellion/youthful aspect of the show and the collection.

The show was closed by a couple of ballgowns, but even those weren’t all too serious. But never mind if their outfits matched with the dresscode or not; never a dull moment with these Dsquared high school girls

 

 

 

Aquilano & Rimondi Catwalk Fashion Show Milan Womenswear FW2012

The Aquilan & Rimondi show had a royal vibe. Tommaso Aquilano and Roberto Rimondi’s inspiration was a mix  of Marie Antoinette and the holy women  in Italian Baroque paintings. That led to dresses buttoned up to the chin revealing a bare back view, Maltese cross patterns, a minimalist and strict silhouette, lots of dark red, purple, midnight blue and black. The designers were at their most convincing when they gave that Gothic vein free rein.

First View Milan Womenswear FW2012: Techno Forward

 

Show reports told us that Ennio Capasa of C’N’C Costume National had “imagined a woman in a virtual metropolis” who is “post-punk, post-chic but above all technological.”

It seems to cover the choice of many: Fabrics, like extra shiny, slick patent leather, seemed to take priority over flattering
fit, as robust outerwear came in boxy shapes with diagonal zippers. It was futuristic and powerful. Uniforms inspire, which shows in mechanical straight lines, Bauhaus minimalism and military and naval tailoring.

Fendi shows harness belts combined with silky sleek tops and flared plisse. C’N’C Costume National shows two girls zipped in square cut shapes combining the high gloss with the soft touch. Where Sportmax was obviously
inspired by the uniform of martial arts: Karate, judo and other elegantly dressed forms of fighting.

Stylespot is a collaboration with Stijlinstituut Amsterdam

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