MILAN FASHION WEEK: SPRING 2010 PART I

as for london fashion week, milan fashion week has been condensed down to one post! yay! as always i was thoroughly impressed with milan fashion week. i loved a great number of shows from milan fashion week but if i had to narrow down my faves to four (which is very hard!) i would say versace, pollini, gucci and emilio pucci were my faves and i wish i could squeee aquilano.rimondi into the fave four...but obviously i can't. anyway, i hope you enjoy this post as always.
♥ me

versus- this was a great rtw debut for versus. christopher kane did a great job as donatella versace agrees and versus reflects the sex appeal of versace with the kitsch of christopher kane combined. all of these dresses are fun and young without being too thoughtless. i think that the sparkly dress to the far right would look great on emma watson, and it's also a good dress for those with warm brown skintones because of the pewter sparkly embellishments and the sandy color of the body of the dress.

versace- lots and lots of prints and body conscious looks. i was so surprised to see so many prints, it almost felt like a pucci show! lots of geometricism was used as well, such as constructing parts of the dresses out of triangle shaped fabric or making triangular patterns in the dresses.

trussardi 1911- i've never seen a show from them before, at least i don't remember the name of this fashion house. apparently, it's been in existence for quite some time and i'm liking the earthy, warm, purely italian feel it has. all of these dresses are begging to be worn for a night on the town.

pollini- *sigh* print perfection. i am in love. i loved the checked, strappy shoes with the big black bows and the model's soft ponytail. this collection was trendsetting. i expect to see alot of big bowed shoes, drapey plaid dresses as well as fullskirted trench coat dresses in stores. or at least any stores that want me as a customer. :)

neil barrett- this collection was simple and refreshing with a palette of black and white and with the concept that the guy should be brought out in every girl. it worked out well.

moschino cheap & chic- the spring 2010 collection for moschino cheap & chic was inspired by the fusion of mod style and flower child flair.

moschino- at moschino we saw a tasteful reinterpretation of the 80s with lots of gold hardware such as big gold hoop earrings, gold high heeled sandals and gold chained bags, as well as bright colors, prints and shorter hemlines.

iceberg- this collection drew inspiration from mickey mouse on safari. now if that isn't original, what is? paolo gerani did a great job by making this idea work. there are a lot of great, fun, red carpet as well as party or event pieces in this collection.

gucci- this collection can be described as beautiful sportswear. the color palette as well as the prints were clean and bright, metallic detailing on dresses, skirts, jackets and pants were used to contour the model's body and all of the model's hair was slicked back neatly. this collection was really original and inspiring and had a different feel from all of the other shows i've seen so far, including new york and london fashion week. it was lovely. i'm going to make a prediction ( who knows if it will actually happen): blake lively will wear a dress from this collection. she likes showing off her body and her cleavage, and she's worn dresses similar to the cut of some of the gucci ones in the spring 2010 collection so i'm sure she'll wear something from this presentation.

giorgio armani- i loved armani's abundant use of blues in this collection. they were the most beautiful shades of blue, deep and brooding or light and floaty.

gianfranco ferre- : loved it! lots of use of light, floaty materials such as organza, chiffon and lame as well as light colors. models wore lightly crimped hair and blank faces.

gabriele colangelo- very elegant with signature italian flair.

etro- i don't usually like etro shows, but i enjoyed this one. there was less attention put into creating annoying pasiley prints and more attention put into creating piece that many different women (hippie or no hippie) would like to wear.

emilio pucci- looks: 2,20,28,34 peter dundas is a godsend for the house of emilio pucci. i fell in love with his debut collection and i am head over heels for the perfection that is his spring 2010 collection for emilio pucci.

dsquared- this show definitely stuck to its theme of camping in the great outdoors. i didn't think i'd like this collection but i was won over by the many brilliant red carpet dresses they presented amidst ant printed shirts, cut off shorts and vests dipped in bright caution tape yellow.

dolce & gabbana- a dark color palette and heavy use of lace, print (floral and a red and black leopard print) as well as three piece suiting.

d&g- mr. dolce and mr. gabbana made denim look so amazing and glam. the western look has never appealed to me as much as it does now!

bottega veneta- the color palette consisted mainly of white, cream and a warm sunhine yellow. loved it as i usually love bottega veneta, they have such an appealing feminine aesthetic.

blumarine- bright and super fun

aquilano.rimondi- just what i love, amazing dresses.

albino- this show was great and could be summed up in a few words: sparkly knee high socks, chunky heeled shoes, skirt suits, dresses, draping frayed hems, soft color, black.

alberta ferretti- i thouroughly enjoyed viewing this soft, serene and feminine show. the color palette was very calming: white, off white, lavender, purple, nude and muted corals. sheerness, short hemlines as well as long tailored skirts were featured.

fashion week notes

prada- i never enjoy prada as much as everyone else does. featured were suits, dresses, skirts and tops with big cutouts that exposed the center of the chest. big crystal embellishments were also featured as well as frayed hems on bermuda shorts and skirts. all the models had voluminous pigtails and bright, glossy red lips.

just cavalli- if you're a just cavalli kind of girl you'll be channeling glamour grunge (if that even exists...) for spring 2010. some pieces were great, but most of it felt like costume.

roberto cavalli- all the models looked as if they had flown through a closet and ended up wearing whatever clothing happened to fall on them. their necks were wound in menswear ties, they wore dresses over button ups and trousers and most of the clothes were loose fitting. many prints abounded as well. some of the finale dresses were really pretty with ruffly shoulder appliques.

maxmara- this show bored me.

francesco scognamiglio- this was more a show of the models' bountiful chests if anything.

emporio armani- sorry giorgio, i only liked 2 looks out of the 68 look show.

salvatore ferragamo- cristina ortiz's last collection for salvatore ferragamo was not very strong.

missoni- this collection was not to my liking with its' bizarre styling and mostly washed out color palette.

maurizio pecoraro- a pastel color palette and lots of shell embellishment and floral appliques. this collection didn't appeal to me though because it wasn't very exciting and i couldn't really picture wearing this collection much.

marni- stripes, headscarves, rich browns, forest greens and pinks, embossed floral prints, bright multicolored floral prints on shifts and shirts....this marni collection was like all the others. this time, i just didn't take a liking to it.

fendi- this collection was really cute: the color palette was all pastels, featured were frayed hems, super short hems, sheerness, high frizzy buns and fendi bags of all sizes. i wish the envelope was pushed a bit further in the creativity department, and then i would have loved it.

jil sander- after raf simon's stellar fall 2009 collection i was disappointed by his spring 2010 collective for jil sander. he said he was going back to nature with this collection...to me it looked like a bunch of shift dresses and suits with holes in it or frayed cloth sewed onto it.

MILAN FASHION WEEK: FALL 2009 PART II

i've been so busy, and i'm sorry if i haven't been replying to comments fast enough. but i will reply to them! i hope to bring you paris fashion week soon! here is the last of my faves from milan fashion week.
♥ me

versace- i really enjoyed this fall 2009 collection of versace. it seemed a lot more subdued than most versace shows but it was still sexy and feminine. my absolute favorite piece has to be the beautiful cap sleeved blue gown with a diamond opening at the chest (second dress from the right).

pringle of scotland- well made knits with fur accents. at the end some colorful feathered looks were shown, but they weren't to my taste.

prada- i was scared from the first few looks. the models were all so pale and mad looking. however the cut of the clothes is very classic, with a little twist and i liked the accessories. you won't see me in the giant wellies she created but i like her studded suede mary jane like heels with a huge plume of leather fringing at the back. also featured were beautiful yet simple doctor like handbags--some resembled fancy toolbags while others resembled hermes birkins. also featured were super short wool shorts, long cardigans, and dresses made out of jewel encrusted strips of leather. i didn't really like the weird leather dresses, but i'm sure we'll see them in a few editorials.

moschino cheap & chic- i loved the belting in this collection, it was very original, as the belts didn't reach all the way around the waist. i loved the ruffled skirts and the new take on ladylike looks.

missoni- i loved the piled on knitwear. it looked so comfy and soft, and i'd love to wear it now, because it's so cold!

fashion week notes...

* platform shoes are big for fall 09. i've been seeing them on so many runways--from burberry to erin fetherston to d&g. they are everywhere--and they make everyone tall (and the models taller)!

just cavalli- it took as interesting and surprising turn to rocker chic. there were lots of slashed jeans, short dresses and blazers.

moschino- it seems that i should live in italy because i love everything that milan is churning out. i would love to own that floral applique coat that was the first look for moschino. it was a nice navy blue and had unique details. the beginning of this show was really good, with a lot of floral details (prints or appliques) and nice knee length dresses, but as the show went on i got bored. i need the show to keep getting better as it goes on.

iceberg- featured were chunky knits, shiny lizard/snake skins, zippers, furs, ankle boots and tight skinny pants. i loved look 16, a red fabric fish scale dress with a chunky black zipper down the front. i hope to see that on the red carpet or on a street style column or something. also there was a nice one shouldered dress where one part was jersey and the other part was a textured patent fish scale textile. i didn't really like the collection as a whole because at times it felt really overworked and a lot of the color combos (orangey red with bubbglegum pink) was sickening.

gucci- frida giannini took gucci on a trip back to the '80s. i miss her hippie stint, but i guess she had to upgrade to powersuit dressing, crazy eyeshadow and bold red lips. featured were a lot of high leather boots, leather, shiney sateen like fabrics, blues, purples, large dot print, skinny suits, metallic detailing on the clothes, shiny black bags and big black sunglasses. the collection got better towards the end with a lot of sparkly, short dresses that reminded me a bit of balmain but not too much. i just wasn't feeling this collection, but i'm sure some of these individual pieces will look smashing outside of the show.

alessandro dell'acqua- the show was impeccably styled, and all of the clothes looked great and all of the models looked great. even though he used a purely neutral color palette consisting of black and browns and a few metallic touches he got a lot of these few colors. i also loved the amazing bags with fur tail things hanging off of the straps. however, i'm not sure how these clothes will look on people, that aren't models and who weren't styled to look perfect in the clothes.

salvatore ferragamo- very polished, but i couldn't find too many pieces that i was head over heels in love with. it was still a very good collection though.

roberto cavalli- cavalli has a new girl,

"She's tough, aggressive, sexy, and young, and she's going to help me fight this crisis," Cavalli said backstage(style.com)...and his description was spot on. my favorite part of this collection were the beautiful boots made out of grommeted leather and fur. most of the looks included thigh high boots, skinny jeans, fur, or uneven hemmed minidresses. it was nothing revolutionary, the looks were just new for cavalli.

maurizio pecoraro- all the models looked like dressed up gothic girls. i liked the accessories more than the clothes.

etro- etro has never excited me or appealed to me, and that didn't change with this collection.

aquilano.rimondi- the emphasis was definitely on the shoulders for this collection. every look had big, sculpted shoulders. i liked a few of the pieces, such as a balmain-esque white blazer with big shoulders and satin lapels, and a red velvet dress with big shoulders that closed the show--however, most of those clothes weren't overly appealing, and sometimes over the top.

fendi- featured at fendi was a dark fall palette, louche fabrics such as velvet and embellished material, and spats. i loved two pieces from the collection, but other looks seemed similar and boring.

francesco scognamiglio- this show was very architectural and very fetishy. the shoes were miles high and had thick hooker platforms and many of the blouses, skits and dresses had razor sharp pleats that extended away from the body. also featured was body armor worn over the ribcage and heavily round studded pants, as well as necklaces that looked like gold fat caterpillars laying on the model's necks.

maxmara- maxmara made a return to simple, clean cut luxury. lots of camel coats and suits were featured, as well as pencil skirts and simple blouses.

pollini- more cute and quirky colorful looks from jonathan saunders, the head of pollini.