Blumarine Catwalk Fashion Show Milan Womenswear FW2013

Known for her sweet, soft and girly designs Anna Molinari did not disappoint on Friday. Pastel shades sweaters, coats and (unflattering) pleated pants opened the Blumarine show. Knitted hot pants were mixed with fur-like coats in the same shade as the nude colored footwear seemed to almost be one with the models’ feet. A menswear inspired section in the middle of the show (with a tweed cape, hounds tooth printed fur and a checked suit with statement shoulders) woke everyone in the audience up, before continuing with baby blues and vale pinks. Classic Voluminous shirts with bow details and ruffled skirts were right up on Molinari’s alley. As a few sheer T-shirt dresses and pleated short skirts added a welcome young touch to the collection.

Blumarine Catwalk Fashion Show Milan SS2013

After last season’s over the top bright colored metallic looks Anna Molinari took a few steps back with her upcoming spring collection. Yes, her girls still looked sexy. Yet this time it was much more subtle as clothes looked gorgeous enough to stand out without trying too hard.

Off shoulders tops, low V-necks, peek a boo sweaters, sheer dresses and cut-out jackets; there was quite a lot of skin at sight, but Molinari kept it modest. Sweet princess like shades followed each other in the ‘fairytale dream’ Blumarine created just for today.

Lace details, colored sequins and beaded fringes added some extra (as if there was not yet enough) girly-ness.

From Blumarine’s chunky sweaters to her silky pants and sporty parka’s; every piece in the collection got a touch of glamour. The kind of glamour that will have Molinari’s loyal fans running to the stores in February. ‘Cause it may be a less in your face collection; Blumarine’s customers will still love every bit of it.

 

 

 

Blumarine Catwalk Fashion Show Milan FW2012

The name of today’s Blumarine show was Positively Shining. And shiny it was… Besides Anna’s usual suspects, animal prints and bright shades, metallics were a central theme in the collection.

The glitz and glam theme started off subtly with silver shaded ankle boots, yet soon the full on shiny grey-ish/silver looks (skinny jeans and trench coats) appeared. They were followed by ensembles (snakeskin shorts, skirts and old skool jackets) in other metallic tones like light pink, gold-ish and light blue. And towards the end the shiny was even introduced on a few disco chic biker jackets, with every possible shade reflected in them.

Now you would think the metallic part would be enough of a wow-factor for a winter collection. But hey, it’s Blumarine and with Blumarine girls you can never overdo it. So Anna added some frizzy bright furs, some full op leopard looks, a couple of larger than life (hoola hoop) earrings and a bunch of sexy sequined rainbow party dresses.

Positivity to the max we would say and we sure can use some of that.

 

Blumarine Catwalk Fashion Show Milan SS2012

It seems like cropped tops are going to be the hit of next summer. We spotted them in New York, London and now in Milan as well. At Blumarine they came in many versions; off shoulder, bandeau and biker jacket. Combined with shorts and skirts there was a lot of skin on show.

But maybe those items are exactly what you want during a hot summer. Besides there was enough to choose from for the more ‘formal’ summer events. Like cute black tea dresses with neon floral prints. Or matchy matchy (pajama) looks with colorful floral patterns on them.

Anna Molinari even showed a bit of a kinky side during the end of the show when she presented full black looks with crocodile leather, sequins and feathers. She could have held back a bit on the styling side, since all looks were a bit too much of everything. Those enormous floral accessories seemed a little childish too. Big earrings are one of the many trends for SS2012, but these ones just felt wrong.

But Molinari did show versatility. So if you’re not a big fan of the dark fetish theme, you might just fall in love with some of the bright, flirty fifties-style dresses.

Talking about color. At Blumarine

Designers are trying hard to tempt us with color. At Blumarine it was head to toe purple, yellow, blue or orange – bags included.

Sylvie van der Vaart at Blumarine

Sylvie van der Vaart, wife of soccer-player Rafael van der Vaart (midfielder at Tottenham), visited the Blumarine-show today.

Blumarine Catwalk Fashion Show Milan SS2011

Blugirl Catwalk Fashion Show Milan FW2010

The Blugirl Fashion Show started off fresh and kind of angelic as the first few models appeared dressed in ivory (cream) shades from head to toe. Yet through the angelic image the Italian spirit of the brand was very clear as well. Models in animal printed dresses with matching gloves and headbands reminded us of that. Plus: the heavy use of embellishments like studs, crystals and sequins looked perfect for any Italian (Blu)girl.

Since knitwear was the starting point for the collection the clothes had a lot of texture. In one look you could have a heavy woolen coat with a floral patterned skirt combined with a legging in another graphic design.

We thought some of the chunky knits resembled fur, but according to the show notes they were even meant to replace fur. This ‘fake fur’ could be seen on many of the sleeves of the woolen coats.

After the animal prints the cream shades were mixed with dresses in gold lamé and clothes full of silver sequins. Then the collection turned a little darker. First gray, later on black.

We saw black knitwear combined with some sequined outfits. It also formed a nice combination with some black see-through lace. Some of the gray/black dresses, jackets and leggings were dip dyed.

All models wore multiple necklaces and two elastic bands, one at the beginning of their ponytail and one halfway. Some girls wore a sequined headband.

After all the black, the cream shade popped up one more time for the final, ‘bridal’ look. The last model wore a cream lace dress and a matching fur coat. On her head she had a tiara, in her hands she held a bouquet. It seemed like the perfect ending of a cohesive, textured, feminine and very Italian Blugirl collection.

Trends ss2010: slim silhouettes

Although models usually  have a slim silhouette already, for ss2010 a few designers made their models look even taller and thinner than they normally are.

At Missoni’s fashion show the clothes with maximum lengths accentuated the models’ slim figures. The girls were wrapped in lots of layers as well. They wore long cardigans on top of long dresses, that only left a small part of their legs uncovered. The fact that Angela Missoni mostly used one shade per outfit added  the feeling of the girls looking slimmer than ever.

Besides Missoni, many other brands had long slim pieces in their collections. Etro, Calvin Klein, Blumarine, Roberto Cavalli, Alberta Ferretti and Oscar de la Renta showed some great examples. Most of these were long feminine dresses, made of ultra-light and airy fabrics to make the outfit look less stiff.

Flowers or sequins were the finishing touch on many of these silhouette-accentuating outfits.

Tess van Daelen

Blumarine Catwalk Show

Style: sugarsweet girls. Colors: white, lilac, powdery pastels, gold. Fabrics: angora, satin, denim, tweed, lots of leopardprints and flowers.  Accessories: golden sandals, boots. Make-up: fresh beauty, rosy lips, shiny hair.