Marni Catwalk Fashion Show Menswear Milan FW2017

It’s not an easy challenge to set a new path for a fashion brand after the departure of its founder and creative director. With his debut collection for Marni, Francesco Risso was wise enough to not completely shock the label’s followers — there were references to the Consuelo Castiglioni era in the color palette, the graphic patterns and the use of fabrics — while attempting to tap into a younger generation of customers. So instead of continuing Castiglioni’s strive for quirkiness, Risso embraced a more approachable, cool street approach.

While Castiglioni with her approach to fashion drew fans of the avant garde, Risso with his first collection seemed interested in developing a more playful, youthful image for the brand — one that is definitely less edgy.

Marni Catwalk Fashion Show Milan Womenswear FW2016

How we love a Sunday Milan Fashion Week morning, starting our fashion filled day with Marni. Today the show got us in an extra good mood. One glance at it’s first look and we already knew; this is going to be a hit collection. Old Hollywood glam wrapped in a series of contemporary looks made us both feel nostalgic as well as super excited for next fashion season. Shape (round proportions), color and material (compact, stiff) in the ultimate mix; this was modern elegance at it’s best. High waisted pants were paired with old school V-neck sweaters. There were suede skirts worn with blouses that had XL sleeves and cuffs. Tweed pants were matched with sporty cropped jackets. All given the ultimate Marni touch by added Xl sequins, pockets, buttons, belts and double collars. Oh and let’s not forget about those earrings. Floral prints and checks worked beautifully with the warm color palette. A dress and a co-ord had touches of navy colored velvet swirly layering on them. As sparkly chunky embroideries gave the finale’s little black dress a splendid Marni make-over. All remarkable, original rich yet simplistic looks that turned out even stronger thanks to the 40s inspired make-up, Consuelo Castiglioni chose to accompany her designs. A classic Hollywood look of pale skin, intense brown colored lips and wavy hair given a mysterious contemporary twist.

Now how was your Sunday morning?

Marni Fashion Show Milan Womenswear SS2016

On Sunday morning Consuelo Castiglione sure woke us up with his poppy mix of all things Marni presented to the tunes of Nina Simone’s ‘Baltimore’. For spring/summer his primary colored designs seemed bolt in every way. Shades, silhouettes, proportions, detailing and styling; it was all a lot, yet never too much for Marni. Asymmetric color block looks followed each other up on the runway. Bright turtle neck worn underneath tunics and boxy jackets paired with ultra wide flares. Leave printed tunic co-ords, shiny jackets with rounded, tucked up sleeves and a series of silky black evening numbers. Sequins, loose straps, mesh details; all the SS2016 trends we spotted before (at NYFW) were there, but magnified for Marni. Eye catching earrings, statement sunnies,multiple bangles, exaggerated zippers and large chain bags in the mix. Strong partings and Twiggy lashes to the touch. This was a blunt Marni at it’s best, ‘fashion’ written all over it and perhaps the start of a huuuge upcoming maximalism trend (after so many seasons of cleanness and sobriety it’s about time).

Marni Menswear Catwalk Fashion Show Milan SS2016

With a Tim Burton-esque soundtrack playing in the backround, Consuelo Castiglioni’s return to the Milan runway with Marni men’s wear captured the awkward juncture between boyhood and the adult world. Outsized collars splayed over leisure suits that could have been nabbed from an uncle’s Seventies vacation wardrobe. Pants, whether loose or slim, were often too short and showed chunky socks and sandals.

It all had a naïve charm that was true to Castiglioni’s retro-tinged aesthetic. She embraced workwear codes to explore that no-man’s land between leisure and the office: employing lots of Maytag-repairman blue, or shades evoking Soviet-era uniforms; adding utility pockets to shrunken blazers, and splicing suit sleeves onto boxy shirts. Somehow the queasy colors, funny shapes and occasional flash of noisy floral prints managed to work together.

Marni Catwalk Fashion Show Milan FW2015

Please enjoy the pictures, our review and show report will follow shortly.

Marni Catwalk Fashion Show Milan Womenswear SS2015

On Sunday Marni was one of the final Italian brands to show their s/s collection in Milan. And well, the brand, which is turning 20 this year, made sure Milan Fashion Week went out with a bang. Besides the show Marni set up a large flower market at one of Milans famous 18th century building where the show was held. Not only the prettiest of flowers were represented here. Marni had covered just about any type of gardening essential, decoratively exposed in cheerful (and of course) branded bags.

It was a subtle nod to the collection, which involved some mind blowing (made abstract and magnified) floral prints of it’s own. The show started off very serene and calm though, with white, sandy and grey structured, asymmetrical outfits, looking sportive and modern at the same time. Kimono like sleeves and judo inspired tied belts gave the collection a subtle oriental touch. As did the graphic floral prints in green, yellow and red with summer season written all over them.

Of course it wouldn’t be a Marni show if accessories didn’t play their part. Multiple chunky necklaces worn at the same time, eye-catching earrings, statement bags and some impressive sportive platform sandals made it into a solid summer collection. No pulling from the archives, no looking back, no “best of”or “greatest hits”, but a collection perfectly worthy of concluding 20 Marni years.

Marni Catwalk Fashion Show Milan Womenswear SS2014

The Marni-show was full of contradictions, yet designer Consuelo Castiglione managed to keep the overall vibe minimal, austere and restraint. The excess she mentioned in the show-notes aimed viagra online pharmacy at the ruffles, heavy floral appliques and the jewel-adornments – but still it all looked very disciplined.
There were ruffles on the waist of a chic dress adding just the right amount of volume to give it charm. And a bomber jacket and pencil skirt were heavily decorated in deep green and black stones, the effect was dazzling yet sophisticated. The colors moved from black an gray tot beige and red, the prints will definitely please a lot of women.
The silhouettes were often relaxed and easy. Here and there, a Japanese vibe came through — a kimono-style, some of the ruffles — but very subtle.

Marni Catwalk Fashion Show Milan Womenswear FW2013

It was not only the stage – a sepia-toned forest mural – that set a melancholic tone at Marni this morning. It was also the collection in sturdy black/cement-gray/greenish wools and tweeds, the roomy aviator-blousons, militairy style and the models make up that fed the mood. The designer played with ideas of un-balanced balance: volume and flatness, severity and grace, opacity and shine. Protagonists were the precision of the lines, assertiveness of the cuts, density of the surfaces. They unfolded and interact, creating an intangible narrative.

Apart from a few high heels, shoes were flat (at the end with a gilded toe) and ridingboots played a major role. Long fur stoles, wound around the neck like boas, and snug fur capes added drama to austere daywear: strapless tops ending in peplums and A-line tunics fronted with a corset traced out in felt. Skirts flared gently and fell about the knee. There were not many prints, only a few at the end of the show: wintry drawn landscapes and black-and-white scribbles adorned skirts and tops outlined with leather taping.

Marni Catwalk Fashion Show Milan SS2013

Firmness. Sparseness as elegance. The new Marni collection is a weightless exploration of volume. Form is reduced to its pure essence, laid bare to expose the precision of the cut and beauty of the fabric.
Clothes stand away from the body, gently drawing moving contours around it. They float, fold and turn. Silhouettes are clean and sculpted: A-line, trapeze and to the knee.
A sense of spontaneity is focal: dresses look like fabric was folded, rather than cut, into the final shape; pleats and peplums create sensuous additions on tops and skirts. The tension between delicacy and strictness adds nuance: short-sleeved shirts and matching pants are as efficient as uniforms; basques bring focus on the hips; flowery patterns are feisty.
The color palette contains white, black, dark green, touches of aqua, pale grey, orange, red, purple. Firm, compact fabrics enhance the bare pureness of the lines: cotton canvas, tape jacquard, bonded leather.

Marni Catwalk Fashion Show Milan Womenswear FW2012

Control and precision; grace that is dry, assertive, with a hint of tension. An idea of graphic composition permeates the Marni collection for fall 2012: pure lines, decisive volumes. As if obeying to a precise layering plan, outfits have a constructivist feel with a sleek outlook and a tactile intensity.
The silhouette is neat and precise, to-the-knee, with a dropped waist. There’s an idea of clothing as a soft, architectural element. Exact capes create a firm halo around the body. Decoration turns into construction, playing with the weight of surfaces.  An air of grace and rigor runs through: the neck is always covered. Prints are used as an accent: a single outsized flower, papiro jacquards and brocades.
The palette has notes of butter, crimson red, clear blue with touches of pink, blush, tan and broken with notes of black, tobacco and saffron. Fabrics have a compact hand: silk wool double-face, lurex jacquard, wool crepe. Exaggerated, oversized patent leather and snakeskin add weight and presence.

Next Page »