Moschino Cheap and Chic Catwalk Fashion Show Milan SS2011

The Moschino Cheap and Chic fashion show was different than we expected. There were no seats so people were standing in front of the runway. Also there was loud music and pizza and prosecco was being served. So it felt more like being at a concert or a party than attending a fashion show.

But it set the right mood. We saw Anna dello Russo dancing like crazy and everyone else was enjoying themselves too. And as soon as the models appeared the crowd was smiling even more.

The joyful collection was an explosion of prints and color. Some outfits had more than six different bright colored prints on them. But still Rosella Jardini managed to avoid a clown-y look.

There were summer dresses, blouses and over the knee skirts. Airy silk skirts were matched with knitted sweaters and waist belts. Colors like turquoise, coral, lilac and orange were combined.

A T-shirt with a piece sign on it which read ‘Piece & Irony’ was worn with a pair of salmon pink pants. And a gorgeous lemon print could be seen on a skirt, a blouse and a sexy asymmetrical dress.

Bright red lips, colorul headbands, flower corsages, check-printed shoes and eye-catching necklaces brought even more joy to the collection. The blowing kisses-thing the models did was maybe a bit too much, but we sure had a fun night.

Emilio Pucci Catwalk Fashion Show Milan SS2011

The Pucci fashion show started way too late, because Kylie Minogue wasn’t on time. But the singer, who arrived in a gold asymmetrical Pucci dress, was worth the wait. She’s worn Pucci outfits on so many occasions and really is the perfect celeb to promote the sexy chic Italian brand.

The spring/summer collection was once again glamorous and fearless. Peter Dundas designed sheer printed dresses, tight pants with slightly flared legs and gorgeous swimsuits.

The first looks had white & blue prints, which halfway the collection changed into red, orange and camel hues. Also, some yellow and pink came by.

Lace-up high boots, lace-up collars and lace-up high slits could be seen throughout the whole show. The lace-up details were one of the main aspects of the collection, together with tassels, cut-outs, sequins and ruffles.

The tassels were playfully added on shoulder bags, tops and on a trench coat. Multiple cut-outs added even more sexiness to the designs (dresses and swimsuits) that were already pretty body-revealing. Large sequins, which were added on dresses, pants and scarves, gave the looks some extra glamour.

And headbands, necklaces with big crosses and sunglasses with rose-colored glasses were a great finishing of the looks.

All outfits were perfection and the models looked like the ideal woman. Yet not every average woman call wear those clothes, designed with the bodies of supermodels in mind. Especially the long dresses with high slits and tight fitted shiny pants will only look good if you have the length and the size of a model. Even Kylie, who is particularly tiny, could not wear any of the clothes without them being custom made for her.

But then again, maybe most women wearing Pucci are not your average women. Maybe they do have the perfect body type for the designs (or more than enough money to have the clothes tailor made).

Jil Sander Catwalk Fashion Show Milan SS2011

Wow, that was a real good Jil Sander-show. The way Raf Simons treats colors, the new minimalism but also the need for strong elegance proofs he is a true craftsman and creative, daring designer. Yes, the silhouette was exaggerated, yes the colors sometimes hurt the eyes and yes the skirts were maybe too long – but fashion can take a whole new direction with his ideas.

Simons focused at shape, volume, proportion and new materials and used couture as his vehicle. Skirts were long and sack shaped, trousers ultra-wide and some tops had a contrasting frill. This sounds very old fashioned haute couture – especially because it reminded of the old YSL and Givenchy – but Simons added a modern touch by mixing it with plain white T-shirts or a tank-top. Jackets had contrasting front edges, the long skirts seemed classic but had sensual high splits and the simple dresses with vertical stripes (in white and navy) looked modern and right on.

Besides shape, color was his most important message; so don’t be afraid of neon yellow, day glo orange, shocking pink, purple, green, electric blue or the exaggerated floral prints.

Blumarine Catwalk Fashion Show Milan SS2011

Emporio Armani Catwalk Fashion Show Milan SS2011

According to the pressrelease the collection of Emporio Armani was concentrated around ten elements: glamour, geometric deco, lightness, sheath, daywear, sleekness, shades , shape, form and fancy. Well, it briefly told what the collection was about: different layers of different shapes created new (sleek) forms, stretch see through tubes and leggings tamed the short dresses and skirts, minreal shades got company of green, black and watermelon red.

Max Mara Catwalk Fashion Show Milan SS2011

Somehow the summerseason is never the strongest at Max Mara. Winter means coats and they’re good at that. So the trenchcoats and suits were the best of the spring summer collection plus the long dresses in solid colors like red, purple and yellow.

Color was an important theme of the collection besides minimalism. The team at Max Mara tried to translate the big trend of next summer into a special look, but somehow the short flared pants looked a bit outdated and too tight for now and the use of some hairy fabric did not quite succeed. And even the translation of a minimal style was not totally convincing. Although the striped jackets and dresses and nude-colored shirts and shorts were a good shot.

Bottega Veneta Catwalk Fashion Show Milan SS2011

Just like his menswearcollection for ss2010 Tomas Maier tried to mix formal and casual wear into ultra-comfortable womenswear without losing the feminine touch. So flowing dresses got structure thanks to leather inserts, tankstops were attached to wide skirts decorated with studs, dresses were long, wide and fluid and suits looked as if they came straight out of the water.

The silhouette was close to the body but never tight, sometimes (crocodile) leather contrasted with the  silk and jerseys that had a wetlook.  It was the fluidity of the fabrics that gave the collection it’s sensual touch. Colors were rather modest compared to the vivid pinks and yellows we spotted in other collections. Bottlegreen, gray, black, white, babyblue and taupe were the key-colors. The flat sandals and slippers accentuated  the casual theme.

Thank you Tess!

Time for a second shift. We said goodbye to Tess yesterday, and I will keep you posted from now on. It’s going to be a busy week-end in Milan with shows of Jil Sander, Dolce & gabbana, Bottega Veneta, Armani and Marni.

Thank you Tess, you did a great job!

C’N’C Costume National Catwalk Fashion Show Milan SS2011.

Since the C’N’C fashion show was held outside, at the Piazza Duomo thousands of people could have the joy of watching a live fashion show. But before the models came on there was music and there were dancers as part of the Milano Loves Fashion concept.

For spring 2011 Ennio Capasa presented womenswear and a few menswear looks. He chose white and gray as his main colors, but towards the end he added nudes and brights like yellow, blue and red.

His maxi dresses, tunics and bandeau tops looked easy going and elegant, but didn’t make our fashion hearts beat faster. Yet it was a good collection and it’s just great that so many people could enjoy it in the centre of Milan.

Temporary Team-member

Meet Marc van Fucht, our temporary Team-member. Marc , who’s a well respected documentary-maker, is joining the Team this week-end in Milan. He is doing research and will make some short video’s for the Team Peter Stigter  blog.

« Previous Page — Next Page »