Milan Fashion Week is nothing if not glamorous. Whilst NYFW can be relied upon for sleek & commercial collection and London brings a whole new meaning to being creative, Milan is definitely king for refined (or sometimes glaring *ahem, Moschino*) glamour. Designing for a woman who is confident, affluent and who appreciates the ceremony of dressing up is always going to be all the fun and this season in Milan was definitely fun.
Dolce & Gabbana
Dolce & Gabbana have spent many seasons creating beautiful collections in homage to their beloved homeland Sicily. This season however they changed their viewpoint, looking at Italy through the eyes of an eager tourist, keen to discover and delighted in what they saw. Beautifully intricate but also bold, the collection featured fun quirky ensembles emblazoned with love notes to Italy (a very high end interpretation of those ghastly ‘I heart’ t-shirts that litter street corners of any tourist town) balanced with exquisitely embroidered dresses with a continuation of the floral motifs that have become renown with their lace dresses.
Moschino
Nobody could accuse Jeremy Scott of not having fun. Each season he brings us something zanier and more random than the season before and each season his collections become insanely covetable. This season the theme was ‘car wash couture’ and what a production it was. Playing with his words, Scott emblazoned his garments with tongue in cheek slogans (‘Caution When Wet” and “Dangerous Couture Ahead”) whilst giving his own take on road signs. Reflective stripes were splashed across chic little Chanel-esque suits and accessorised with miniature traffic cone handbags or even traffic cone hats, courtesy of milliner Stephen Jones. And lest anyone misunderstand the carwash concept we had a slew of cocktail dresses fashioned on the rotating brushes of a drive through car wash. Perfectly crazy yet somehow you just know these pieces will be high on spring summer wish lists.
Gucci
Now in his second season, Alessandro Michele continues to define a new era for Gucci. Leaving the overt sexuality of the brands history firmly in it’s past his collection for SS16 continued where AW15 left off, with a continued geeky, girly, retro chic vibe. Grosgrain, sequins and chintzy vintage prints were given a quirky doodle through a clever use of trims. It was unconventional but there’s something so modern about the high necklines and longer hemlines and whilst there was hints of nostalgia through 70’s pussy bow blouses, the use of lurex and the oversized glasses combined with stiff doctors bags, Michele is undoubtedly propelling the brand forward with his unique take.