Italian Fashion Watch

In a surprise shift of fashion gears, Roberto Cavalli, known for his racy styles, chooses sweet over sexy for next season.

His latest collection, shown Wednesday, was dotted with embroidered mini gowns, reminiscent of an imaginary “couture Barbie,” especially when shown off by the long-legged, demurely coifed models. There were also plenty of shimmery shorts and cropped jackets in the collection for Barbie to change into after the ball.

The outfits were accessorized by glittering gold and stone bracelets, in keeping with the current concentration on baubles and bangles, after several lean jewelry seasons on the Milan runway.

Summing up his show back stage, Cavalli warned against being fooled by appearances. “NaivetDe is not part of my vocabulary,” the designer quipped.

Naomi Campbell is reportedly in talks to become the new face of fashion house Dolce and Gabbana.

The supermodel has worn a number of custom-made dresses from the label at last week’s London Fashion Week and inside sources say this is a sign that the talks are going well.

One source told the Daily Mail: “It’s all part of welcoming her to the clan. She and Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana have been in secret talks for a while about making her D&G’s next face.

“They have had a relationship that spans decades and now the plan is for Naomi to be their official muse and ambassador.

“Naomi will be guest of honour at the D&G fashion show in Milan this week and will star in their worldwide advertising campaigns. An absolutely huge deal is on the table.”

Picking up on the easygoing elegance offered by Italian designers this round, Moschino, known for its fashion sense of humour, served up an over-the-top collection for next summer.

With its typically ironic fashion wand, Moschino turns roses into skirts and cropped jackets, uses ruffles on a trench coat, and decorates classic stoles with super sweet bows.

Just when you get the joke, Moschino gets serious, offering a series of perfectly styled couture outfits highlighted by giant bags. Straying from the current use of classic prints and muted earth shades, Moschino paints its collection in bright pink and purple.

For Givenchy’s Fall/Winter 2008 women’s ready-to-wear collection, Riccardo Tisci has taken his inspiration from Latin America. He has combined Latin joie de vivre with his gothic aesthetic.

Latin savoir faire redefines French elegance in sharply tailored silhouettes in this new collection. The key look is skinny long legs with a surfeit of volume on top. In homage to the Latin love of ruffles, frills and pleats have been reinterpreted in lace, cotton and poplin.

Worn with pantsuits, lace provides a feminine contrast to the collection’s masculine tailoring. Softer feminine shapes include a tone-on-tone pale aqua dress, tight at the waist with a fluted skirt finished with ribbon embroidery, glass beads and hand-embroidered eyelets, inspired by a turn-of-the-century corset, said an official.

Executed in a mostly monochrome color palette, the collection’s black and white symbolises the duality of hard and soft, history and modernity, which has come to represent the brand.

Giorgio Armani has just announced that leading Asian actor Takeshi Kaneshiro will be the first Asian male face to appear in an advertising campaign for Emporio Armani in the Fall 2008 men’s collection. A well recognised face throughout Asia, Takeshi’s signing as the new testimonial for Emporio Armani corresponds with the brand’s growing development in the China market, which will celebrate the opening of 13 new Emporio Armani stores around the country within 2008.

Takeshi joins David Beckham who is the official testimonial for Emporio Armani Underwear and KaKa, the testimonial for Emporio Armani Menswear in Europe and the Americas. Takeshi will appear in a special advertising campaign for the Emporio Armani Fall 2008, which will be rolled out in Hongkong, China and Taiwan in leading fashion and lifestyle magazines and on signature billboards.

The union between Giorgio Armani and the film industry is well documented. It all started with the wardrobe he created for Richard Gere in American Gigolo in 1980. Over the years Giorgio Armani has continued to show his passion for motion picture. Giorgio Armani began his support of Asian cinema in 2006 with the costume design for a Chinese language motion picture Confession of Pain, starring Takeshi.

Takeshi has appeared in over 30 films including many landmarks of Asian cinema, among them Wong Kar-Wai’s Chungking Express in 1994. Of Chinese and Japanese descent, Takeshi’s filmography is not limited to Chinese language productions including House of Flying Daggers, Perhaps Love in 2006, The Warlords in 2007 and this year’s Red Cliff but also Japanese films including Returner in 2002.

Giorgio Armani said, “I am excited to collaborate with Takeshi on this new advertising campaign. He is a film and style icon in Asia where his fame transcends cultures both East and West. His sense of effortless style is very contemporary and sophisticated and together with his good look makes him the ideal testimonial for Emporio Armani.”