Monday, March 02, 2015

Highlights from Day 2 of Milan Fashion Week

Highlights from Day 2 of Milan Fashion Week:

Looney Tunes looks from Moschino's fall 2015 collection. Photo: Imaxtree
Looney Tunes looks from Moschino's fall 2015 collection. Photo: Imaxtree
Fashion Month is a marathon, not a sprint, and after two weeks of nonstop runway action in New York and London, we've made it to Milan. Read on for our highlights of day two of Milan Fashion Week.

Max Mara

"Beach babe" certainly isn't the first phrase that comes to mind when you think of Italian label Max Mara. But, with a giant screen playing a soothing clip of waves crashing under blue skies as the show's backdrop, that's the woman we saw for fall 2015. According to the show notes, the collection was inspired by a series of photographs taken in 1962 by George Barris, which capture Marilyn Monroe on the sand wrapping herself in towels and a cozy grandpa cardigan. On the runway, models showed off the outerwear that Max Mara is known for by channeling the late icon's mannerisms, seductively grasping coats shut with their crossed arms. Joan Smalls even wore a Norwegian cardigan that looked just as cozy and classic as the one Monroe sports in the famous photo from over half a century ago.

Though the dusty color palette of sand, ivory, pale blue and rose read very "beachy," the collection also harked back to Monroe's bookish early days as a UCLA student, with tight, cashmere knits, tasseled loafers, cat eye glasses, houndstooth separates and chic cable knits thrown into the mix. To round out the overall theme, ultimate California "It" girl Gigi Hadid opened and closed the show, clutching her camel blanket coat closed as if she'd just stepped off of a breezy shore. I think Monroe would be proud.

Blugirl

A boy-meets-girl aesthetic was in full effect at the Blugirl show on Thursday, and with full, bouncy curls and shiny red lips, models showed off what the show notes refer to as this "dual personality." Masculine overcoats, wide-leg trousers, Price of Wales checked suiting pieces and brogues were worn alongside (and sometime paired with with) girly florals, diaphanous long dresses, sparkly embroideries and fur coats. To give the more boyish looks a ladylike touch, leather belts were worn to highlight the waist. While the head-to-toe patterns were at times a little too loud, one of the bookish pieces — simple sweater vests, plaid skirts, smart outerwear and the aforementioned shoes — would be a very cute addition to any back-to-school wardrobe come September.

Fendi

At Fendi, models entered the runway from behind one of three rotating Roman columns, a good indicator that the fall 2015 collection would be rich in architectural elements and geometry. There were column and apron dresses in leather and rectangular panels of the fabric attached to skirts (which were paired with very crisp shirting), making for clean lines that still looked unlike anything we've seen before.

Outerwear made up a large chunk of the collection, and it was good. And ranged from long, lean coats with oversized buttons, to patchwork fur and leather, to more voluminous, slightly ballon-shaped pea coats and puffers so large they can only be described as duvet-like. (However, none of them were quite as magnificent as the fur with a double stripe at the bottom that Lindsey Wixson wore to close the show.)

As usual with Fendi, it's the accessories that we really expect to make a splash. Aside from the fur bags and colorful, monogrammed charms that hung from them, the furry booties — which were shown in black, grey, ivory, tan and peach — looked as cozy as they did chic, and we're willing to bet that they'll be quite popular among the fashion crowd come fall.

Moschino

Jeremy Scott's designs for Moschino are nothing if not loony — in just over a year at the Italian label, he's already referenced SpongeBob, McDonald's, Barbie and Budweiser — so it shouldn't be too surprising that the designer looked to the actual "Looney Tunes" for his fall 2015 collection.

With a Crayola-bright color palette, the first looks out were cartoonish in Scott's signature way: Models wore long, shiny puffer coats, double-brimmed baseball caps, quilted overalls and comically large backpacks, none of which we could imagine wearing in a real-life scenario.  Then came the literal cartoons: Streetwise versions of Porky Pig, Daffy Duck, Bugs Bunny and more— all dressed in chains and sneakers — were plastered on sweaters, jerseys and baseball pants, followed up later by a teddy bear motif that, lo and behold, is already up for sale on Moschino's website.

Never one to skimp on the streetwear inspiration, Scott also showed lots of denim (much of it patched with metallic gold), oversized sweats layered with heavy chain accessories, bright orange camo and, for the finale looks, graffiti galore. Impressively intricate tagging adorned the gowns that closed the show, one of which was even accessorized with a handbag that was nothing more than a branded can of spray paint hung from a gold chain strap. We're already placing bets on how long it will be before Katy Perry debuts one of these babies on the red carpet.

Posted by Nelio Inacio at 10:22 AM

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)