Italian Fashion Watch

The British designer Matthew Williamson took the Navajo path in his collection for Pucci at Milan Fashion Week.

The collection blazed a trail of brilliant color, mixing pinks, reds and oranges and dazzling hues of turquoise with black, white and tan.

The prints, inspired by traditional native American blankets and jewelry, juxtaposed zigzag patterns and arrow-heads with sun and moon motifs, on silk kimono-jackets, slinky silk jersey dresses, loose-fitting trousers, A-line short skirts and shorts.

The striking patterns were also worked in gold leather or appliquéd in colored snakeskin on to fringed suede jackets and coats.

Navajo beadwork trimmed the cuffs, hems and necklines of kaftans and was even used for a plunge-front swimsuit — most definitely designed for posing, not the pool.

This collection, for spring/summer 2008, marks the first time Williamson has stepped away from the archives and developed his own prints for the legendary company, founded in Florence in 1947 by Count Emilio Pucci, the man who was known as “the Prince of Prints”.

Williamson, 35, who became creative director two years ago, said he now felt confident enough to move away from the psychedelic swirls that had been the house’s signature and stamp his own mark on the Pucci brand.

“I took inspiration for the shapes from the archives, but the prints were mine.”

The woman who gave the world “ugly chic” and made her fortune with tough black nylon, has discovered that all women really want is to be soft and pretty.

So last night (Tuesday) in Milan, Miuccia Prada, the “high priestess” of Italian fashion, bowed to evolutionary change and offered a new vision which was all about an imaginary, natural beauty.

Her collection for spring/summer 2008 was like a flower fairy fantasy for grown-ups, inspired by the erotic Art Nouveau movement of the turn of the 19th century.

A dress appeared emblazoned with the voluptuous petals of an orchid; or was it a Venus Fly-Trap; entwined leaves and branches suggested ivy – or were they snakes; anything was possible in this verdant wonderland.

Everything rippled and flowed, as sinuous as the curves of a woman’s body, from the exotic printed silk tunics, dresses and trousers to the elaborate, hand-carved-and-hand-painted “flower” heels on the multi-colored shoes.

Colors were as vivid and intense as a “Garden of Eden” – woodland greens, soft pinks, shades of citrus and crimsons as rich as painted lips – and the flowers and foliage of the prints which decorated the clothes just as decadently depicted.

Dress featured puffed sleeves, a tracery of ruffles at the shoulder, a curvaceous cut-out delineating the neck. Trousers were loose and languid to the ankle, or blossomed into a flounce at the knee. Little knits were worn with skirts which were like clouds of exquisite fabric, floating along the catwalk.

Sheer silk and a new knitted silk-organza mixed semi-transparency and transparency, giving the clothes a fluidity, unusual in a Prada collection.

The look of the models, too, was a first for Prada. With tousled hair caught in loose pre-Raphaelite chignons and shadowed with metallic red and gold, they had an ethereal, fey beauty which matched the clothes.

“This is the first time I have gone soft,” the designer said backstage. “There is nothing straight in this collection– like nature. Before, I wanted to show women as tough and powerful, so I used thick fabrics, with dignity. Shapes were vertical to represent strength. But I discovered women like soft, they like pretty. It was hard for me, because if you use soft fabrics and cut on the bias it is boring, all it does is show the body. So I did a new soft with experimental prints and fabrics.”

Italian designer team Dolce & Gabbana took a military theme to kit out men next summer, ranging from fatigues with tiny lights that glowed in the dark to camouflage patterned swim trunks.

On the first day of Milan’s spring/summer 2008 menswear collections on Saturday, Dolce & Gabbana’s signature line show was colored in army-inspired khakis, navy, black and white.

Models had tattoos and military-style haircuts, and wore baseball caps or square-crowned peaked soldiers’ hats.

Stefano Gabbana and Domenico Dolce loaded fatigue-style trousers with pockets and webbing holders for phones or hip flasks, adding a kit bag in black leather and mud-tone canvas to carry any extras.

They stretched and squared classic camouflage print and used it on T-shirts and mini swimming trunks - a style of beachwear the duo are currently using in a white version for eye-catching adverts for men’s perfume range Light Blue.

Dolce & Gabbana suggested bermuda shorts in prints of blue and white florals with beige and maroon broad striped shirts.

Waistcoats were on show at Versace as well, as Donatella Versace pared them down to a T shape.

Trench coat shapes stopped short at the waist, shirts were long enough to double up as jackets and there were silky pastel colored cowls on T shirts.

The collection, which had no shorts, no beachwear and no swimwear, stuck to a formal, tailored theme in single-breasted suits and pleat-front trousers.

Versace, known for her glitzy designs for womenswear, fished for fabrics worn by oystercatchers 70 years ago to dress her men, painting silk protein on cotton for a waterproof shine.

The show of Gianfranco Ferre, who died on June 17 after a brain hemorrhage, was yesterday.

Both Missoni and Roberto Cavalli got their inspiration for the collections they presented at Milan’s Fashion Week from the ‘60s fashion.

They didn’t go for anything too stiff or to shiny.

In fact, what they presented were classics which will still look good when a new trend will come up.

Some of Cavalli’s dresses remind you of Gypsy dresses, which look so chic right  now.

Missoni’s collection was designed by Angela Missoni.

Questioned about her new designs, she said “You know me - I like anything easy. The shapes and the softness came easily.”

In a season where every designer tried to present as many flashy items as possible, Gianfranco Ferre kept its traditional style without being influenced by this new trend.

The show took place at his headquarters in via Pontaccio, where he displayed modern designs with a somewhat classical appearance.

He proved to the audience that he really is a master at designing shirts, which were worn by some of today’s most talented models.

The hottest moment of the show was when beautiful models such as Natasha Poly or Bianca Balti ran down the catwalk wearing Ferre’s new collection of lingerie. The whole crowd was watching intensely.

In the end, Ferre took a huge round of applause from his audience, glad that he has offered them a fabulous fashion show.

Fendi was also present at Milan’s Fashion Week with its new collection designed by Karl Lagerfeld. He displayed what he sees as silver fashion.

His models came on the catwalk wearing metallic dresses cut in various geometric dresses, which looked like the black and white patterns that were so popular in the ’60s.

The show wouldn’t have been complete is he wouldn’t have displayed the new Fendi handbags with silver meshing that will hit the stores very soon.

The silver platform sandals also made a huge impression, completing the Fendi Galaxy look.

Over this last 85 years, Gucci has imposed itself as one of the reference brands in the fashion industry. Turning 85 doesn’t actually mean that it’s getting old.

In fact, the company proved that it has kept it’s youthful ideas that have made it so successful, with an outstanding show and party at the Milan Fashion Week.

Designer Frida Gianini celebrated the brand’s birthday with a collection which reminds of Gucci’s ‘60s A-line silhouettes and short styles.

The range of colors was black, with punches of red, purple, and disco silver.

Frida Gianini became Gucci’s creative designer last year, after a period when she was in charge of Gucci’s accessories department.

This year, the highly popular Milan Fashion Week was hosted in the new Milan Fashion Centre. Judging by the numerous positive reviews, it has all been an enormous success.

Here are a few numbers that prove the importance of this event in the fashion world:

- over 100 fashion shows took place, presenting in total over 230 new collections.

- the Fashion Centre hosted half of the shows, 42 in interior rooms and 8 in outside tents.

- “Milano Moda Donna” attracted alone over 20000 visitors.

- At the event, eight new Chinese designers displayed their collections. , Looks like the Chinese want to become important players in this sector.

Of course, besides fashion shows, parties took place all over Milan.

It’s been a great time for all fashion designers that had the chance to show their works here.

We’ll see what next Milan Fashion Week reserves us.

While designers such as Versace or Dolce&Gabbana presented collections that had sex written all over the place, Gucci came with an interesting alternative, inspired from the ‘60s fashion.

Gucci’s new designer, Frida Giannini, has stopped following the trend set by Gucci’s previous designer, Tom Ford, and took a new direction by using the floral models so popular when she started this career in the early ’70.

Huge glasses and crazy color combinations define this spring’s collection.

Frida Gianini became known at Gucci as a top handbag designer.

But with all the success in that area, fashion critics weren’t as satisfied with the collection pulled out here at Milan Fashion Week. Especially now that the retro chic idea was presented by other designers.

The Madrid Fashion Week, which is not even close to the magnitude of the Milan Fashion Week or Paris Fashion Week, came fast to the world’s attention with a controversial decision by it’s officials to exclude models that do not meet what the World Health Organization considers normal weight.

The decision was applauded by numerous figures around the world, all hoping that other countries will take a similar stand in this issue.

The decision came after an alarming increase (according to some) in the number of models that look like sticks. A participant at one fashion show noted that the thickest part of the model’s legs were the ankles.

The issue is quite real, numerous models going to extremes by starving themselves to maintain that silhouette.

Some blame the designers for this. They generally want models that fit their outfits perfectly. If only they’d only make them in one number bigger…

Sophie Hardach ironicly noted that “designers dress up 14-year-olds to make them look like 19-year-olds who look great in clothes that will be sold to 40-year-olds.”

It’s not that far from the truth. At 15 years, the models are naturally skinny. But towards 19-20 years, it gets tougher to have a perfect waist, so they starve themselves in an attempt to get it under control.

But usually, at this age they start modeling for Victoria’s Secret where they get a muh greater fame that they’ve ever had.