Milan Fashion Week

Wrap-up of DAY 2 at the fashion extravaganza

Francesco Scognamiglio

 

My favorite show of the day was by far, Francesco Scognamiglio. His runway was covered in of the most feminine pieces I have ever seen, all put together in one show. With frills, twills, mesh and a shit load of sheers, constructions and fit wasn’t blown out the door.  When using these whimsical textiles most designers forget what they learnt in school, they gather fabric and hang it from the models shoulders and waist, I praise Francesco for sticking to what he knows.

 

Emporio Armani

He came, he conquered and he most definitely owned the catwalk in his ultra-sleek, minimalistic take on a concrete jungle safari. With a color palette that would suit every woman on earth, how could you not love this spring collection set forth by Italian design royalty. I must add that this a drastic improvement, in all aspects of the term, on his attempt at designing sport wear for the Italian Olympic athletes. That we are able learn from such a reputation, that we should stick to what you know, is a God given blessing.  

Piazza Sempiono

With only 13 ensembles, compared to other collections, that stretch a full fleet of near 50 models, Piazza Sempiono didn’t hold back. With such a small spring collection they were still able to embroid a sense of the 60’s into the audiences’ sub-conscious, which has become a synonymous trend for the season.

Prada

Words cannot describe my disappointment. There is a distinct sense of Asian persuasion going on, but it didn’t hit the mark for me. To be brutally honest I didn’t even want to include this in my post, but maybe your opinion differs from mine, please drop a comment below if you do and even more so if you agree. I actually feel bad saying these awful things, because one should never bad mouth Prada but it is well deserved this time round.

MaxMara

Getting down and dirty in the sand of the Kalahari is nothing new to me, so therefore I find great pleasure in putting together a brief display, of MaxMara’s clean cut Safari-Chic spring collection. With an organic colour palette and lively animal prints making waves, this is the perfect representation of what goes on in our back yards here in Africa, fashion wise that is…NOT

As Lady Gaga would say, “Put your paws up baby!”

My Boots = Milan

Since Milan Fashion Week has put a spring in the worlds fashion step with the likes of; Maxmara, Gucci, Emporio Armani and BLK DNM already having the opportunity to show their works of art. I thought it would only be fitting for me to share my favourite pair of shoes, which I was lucky enough to afford last year when I travelled to Milan myself.

So may the fashions in Milan bring you great fortune, just as these babies have brought me.

Gucci @ Milano Fashion Week

With Gucci as the subject of discussion at Milano Fashion Week which opened yesterday, colour is object that has set bar for the spring season of 2013, and its being done in a way never been done before by the major fashion house. With solid block colours in the likes of azalea pink, cobalt blue, citrus yellow, coral, and turquoise,  Giannini also teased the audeince with a touch of print mixed up between the solids; these prints had a sense of Japanese ethnicity that didnt come accross to oriental fro my taste as that was so last year.
 

 

 

This is surely the last thing the Frida Giannini wants to hear but I cannot stop visualizing a 21^st century Brady Bunch in this collection. The full trousers, exaggerated cuffs and ruffles that don’t stop for days, furnished my mind with an entire new perspective on the late 60’s early 70’s. The first time I saw the collection I was instantly schooled on what ruffled perfection should truly look like.
 

 

 

Personally I don’t think the black garments at the tail end of the show, did the prior ensembles justice. Regarding the white creations that were scattered around; now these where pure works of genius, especially the long sleeved, surface sweeping gown with a neckline submerged in coral embellishments, made my heart skip a few. 
 

Trend Report

 

Endulge in the latest shoe trend that has been covering the catwalks and the front rows surrounding it, so click on Trend Report to feed your foot covering fetish.

Colour of the Season

Although this wasn't my favourite of the various colours, I would have to say that it will be pretty hard not to look cool, calm and collected in a near turquoise ensemble. Whether you are dashed out in this awkward shade of blue meets green, from head-2-toe or have gathered a few statement pieces, people will be turning heads when you walk on by.

 

Peter Pilotto _ London Fashion Week

The Peter Pilotto S/S 2013 Collection definitely sprung-my-spring this year round, as some people might have mistaken the duos collections in the past with various designers such as Mary Katrantzou and Roksanda Ilincic, due to their precision work with print technology. They have set themselves apart from the fash-pack this time round, thanks to perfectly executed garment construction and innovative design.

Initially I was a bit conflicted as to the pairing of these micro-min peplums together with slacks. Then as I flicked through my mental-files on fit & proportions, I came to the realisation that fashion has come to the point where all rules possible have been broken, so fundamentally the marriage between these high-waisted pants, ranging from pajama-ramas to taut-fitted leggings, are the textbook[unwritten that is] combination for the summer.

With 50 shades of grey making circles in the sand, Mr. Pilotto on the contrary has never shied away from colour; this statement can be supported by the abundant use of red, which set the stage on fire in London.

 

With a clear-cut sense of futuristic motives, exclusively incorporated into their blouses, walking the plank, I would even dare to say that Katy Perry will undoubtedly be spotted, togged up in something simliar if not the real deal. Regarding the skirts, they have taken the conventional pencil skirt fit, on the hips and waist, then to add a sense of friskiness with drastic flair or contradicting fullness around the knee. The thigh-high slits and plunging V-necks coming into play add that much needed crumb of sex appeal.

With their use of exploding colours, print and texture, not one minute went to waste when viewing these “tour de force” creations. Until next season comes around to prove me wrong, I have pushed my chair back, risen to my feet and given the Peter Pilotto S/S 2013 pret-o-porter collection a standing-O.

Getting in the swing of London

With London fashion Week in full swing as we speak, us sidewalks scouts, that aren’t lucky enough to have front row seats to these premiere events, will have to be content with Style.com for now.  With the month of September bringing all four major fashion weeks to our attention, one after the other , my fingers can’t keep up with the typing on what’s rad and what’s sad regarding the S/S 2013 collections that are being showcased.

Unfortunately these movements will be only pounding the sidewalk in 12months times, but until then here are some snapshots straight from the catwalk in London to keep you motivated for the summer months ahead.

 

With Louise Grey sticking to a current trend of outrageous prints but changing it up a bit with ultra-feminine cuts constructed of soft and silky fabrics, she has my attention and definitely every person that will be passed by one of these “perfectly poised messes”.

 

With Osman blowing all trumpets possible to announce their arrival on the plank, the tailored hot-pink creations couldn’t go unnoticed. With the use of oversized trenches and blouses which created a juxtaposition of perfection vs. urban street wear, to me personally was a bit bland but each individual piece has nothing to be taken away from it.
 

I could have sworn that this collection is an entire season late, as its face saw the light of day. While Pastels are one of the prime trends this season, but who’s counting, as a matter of fact I am busy doubling up my budget on pastel pieces for this summer as I am now surer than ever that it would be a great investment.

Uncanned Fashion Show

With a glass of bubbly in my one hand, a mini platter of hors d'oeuvres in the other I found it hard to capture the hype surrounding the event on my point and shoot camera. With all the anticipation in the air and the music softly pulsating in my ear, we were asked to take our seats as the show was about to begin. With three categories in store for the evening I was sure to be at the edge of my stool with my jaw resting on the catwalk in awe of the beautiful creation to come.

First up was the Green Feast, were first year students were instructed to be innovative with recycled materials and whip up a corset for the event. Boy oh boy did these designers make some statement pieces from nothing but trash.

 

 

 

 

The second show of the evening was the Calico Canvas Collections, the designers had to convey their design personality by only using unbleached cotton as their blank canvas and transform it into masterpieces whether they dye, print or bedazzled the fabric was their choice. Once or twice I was lost for words by the exquisite pieces I witnessed first-hand and if you know me I’m never at a loss for words.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Finally the show that I was most eager to see was about to hit the runway. This was the part of the evening when everyone was holding up theirs breath in expectation to catch a glimpse of the next South African fashion go-to designers. The brief was to create a Semi-Range consisting of three full ensembles that would be treated like a Paris Fashion Week collection; each designer would have their chance to showcase what they have been working on for the past three months. Here it is, their 3 minutes of fame.

 

To kick off the show was a dear friend of mine Skye Pienaar; with her Vera-K collection, which was inspired by the Victorian era. She ignited the runway with her femme fatal ice-cream parlour tones toughed up with some rugged accents. Regarding colour choices Skye hit the nail on its head for the simmering summer season ahead.

 

 

The climax of my evening was reached when Mesh unleashed his outstanding mash-up of Masculinity & Femininity, using a neutral colour palate consisting of hessian coloured fabric and adding pops of colour like blue and gold.  My personal favourite of his collection was the eye-catching drop crotch, like how-low-can-you-go drop crotch jumpsuit, with an asymmetrical front and back details, finished off with a perfectly tailored white cotton pussy-bow shirt.

 

Here is a look at some of the other designers work that went into the Semi Range Collections

 

 

 

 

 

I had a backstage pass to indulge in the behind the scenes gossip and photoshoots take a look.