Moschino Catwalk Fashion Show Milan FW2012

Highly accessorized, lots of black and white and uniform inspired; that’s how you could describe the last couple of Moschino collections and today’s version was no exception.

Models wore double breasted jackets and short playful dresses. Looks came in black, white, red, yellow and blue, some stripes and checks added to the mix.

There was an awful lot of leg at sight for a winter collection.Yet Jardini (sort of) made up for that by placing hats and ostrich feather helmets on the models’ heads. Together with the chunky earrings, huge bows and multi-pocket hip bags they made up for the highly accessorized part of the brand’s signature.

It was a Moschino show like you would expect it to be. Though with the ski / motor pants, dropped waists, quilted coats and shiny capes we spotted some pleasant new season surprises as well.

Prada Catwalk Fashion Show Milan FW2012

Strength and the power of beauty, those seemed to be the idea s behind the Prada fall 2012 collection. The clothes were elegant, though a bit heavy sometimes, and contained all the classic elements Prada’s known for: the black, the appliqued stones, the suit, the awkward colors and vintage prints. New was the layered silhouette, that sometimes reminded of the way modern Muslim-women dress. The tailoring emphasized the high waist and long line as well as pants. Black dominated, followed by mustard, blue, orange and brown/pink. There were belted jackets, coats, tunics and dresses topping pants which were cut above the ankles.

Shoes were (platform) high, with a round toe and decorated. Bags started out big, but in the end  the became so small they could only carry an iPhone.

 

Fendi Catwalk Fashion Show Milan FW2012

Today’s Fendi show seemed to be about ‘more is more’. Not in an Anna dello Russo way though. No, instead of bold, printed, over-accessorised looks Karl presented rich winter looks in which he not only played with structure and texture but also with color.

His creations had a patchwork look to them, being made of many different materials, ranging from fur to silk and from leather to lace. Therefore every single look was ‘cut’ into several pieces. Something those tall slim models can work with, yet seems more challenging for the everyday woman.

Due to the rich styled looks we hardly knew where to focus on. Those partly pleated, partly fur skirts definitely caught our eyes. The beautifully shaped peplums/belts deserved some of our attention too. And then, of course, there were the coats, in fur (white, colored, degrade – Hello Sesame Street), with pointed shoulders and made out of two separate (one long, one short) pieces.

With those heavy materials and a color palette ranging from olive green to burgundy the collection definitely was winter proof. Yet for ‘normal’ woman to be able to pull some of these looks off it could have been slightly more fool proof too.

 

Blugirl Catwalk Fashion Show Milan FW2012

 

The Blugirl show felt as if we stepped into Anna Molinari’s very own doll house. In her colorful richly accessorized looks her models portrayed cuteness to the max.

First we met with her college girls, dressed red, blue and green in argyle sweaters and toggle coats. Then Anna introduced her pastel pretties, in fur light colored looks, topped off by pastel shades earmuffs. The third group of models were Blugirl’s Snowbunnies in fully white and off white outfits which had a shiny detail here and there. And models in party dresses (black from head to toe) closed the show.

The collection was girly, young and great fun to watch. Styled in a more subtle way some of those unique items will be pretty damn wearable too.

 

Alberta Ferretti Catwalk Fashion Show Milan FW2012

Alberta Ferretti surprised most of the audience with a dark collection, dark in color and atmosphere. It was a relatively restricted, severe silhouette and moodier color-palette – but still pretty. To fashion-reporters Alberta Ferretti explained she wanted a wardrobe for a strong, modern woman who has to keep up with today’s challenges. Well, all she needs is a sharp coat, a chunky knit and a multi–functional dress or skirt with chiffon top. Black, purple and blue were the main colors with some hues of white, orange and gray. Evening-wear followed the line of the body in anatomical seams.

Max Mara Catwalk Fashion Show Milan FW2012

Bauhaus architecture and the movies of Fritz Lang were inspirations for MaxMara’s clean shapes accentuated by a single sharp detail or contrast, like a wool coat with a skirt of shaven fur or wool jersey tops banded in crocodile-print leather. There were also wool dresses and jackets with draped backs that reminded of  a classic couture shape, and a revival of the jumpsuit, now looking like a short  wool jacket with slim trousers. Sometimes it had a  naval character with the navy blue coats, breton-striped shirts and wide pants. And not only the navy went through the collection, also trher military influences.

N21 Catwalk Fashion Show Milan FW2012

That was quite a style-icon Alessandro dell’ Aqua took as an inspiration for his fall-collection: Queen Elizabeth. Especially how the queen dresses in her private life.  The designer played with a masculine-feminine theme, using mannish fabrics like tweed, which he softened with ultrafeminine details. These looks included a tweed minidress with an organza overlay and an apronlike dress in the same fabric with a subtle lace hem, or a macramé top tucked into a jeweled skirt.

Gucci Catwalk Fashion Show Milan FW2012

In a palette of purple, navy, forest green, dark brown and black Frida Giannini presented a dark, romantic Gucci collection. She called it modern day romanticism, wit a touch of military, dandy and elegance. There were flat heeled riding boots, wide cut, cropped jackets with gold buttons and softly belted velvet smoking jackets. There was more velvet in the appliqué flowers on translucent chiffon and lace blouses. Skirts had a split in the back, riding trousers flounced wide over each thigh and the full lengtht column dresses were shiny and glittering. Giannini focused on day clothes worn in texturally intense layerings. It sometimes reminded of good old Yves St. Laurent.

The evening-gowns were spectacular, and aimed at the coming next Oscar red-carpet moment.

Calvin Klein Catwalk Fashion Show New York FW 2012

The idea of real strength was the central theme for Francisco Costa and his  fall collection for Calvin Klein. The designer was inspired by Bauhaus and the Bauhaus woman of the 1920s.  The result was  subtle with clothes in ultra-feminine silhouettes starting with a black wool mohair A-line coat cinched at the waist with a wide silver belt. Another example came with the cropped burnt-orange cashmere sweater worn over a matching shift dress.

Costa used thick wools for coats, but also for some dresses, which looked a bit heavy. Better were the black dresses mixed with leather, sometimes it was just an insert, another time is was the back, or a skirt.  The overall effect was powerful, but the clothes also had a softer side: ladylike and charming, even with a Fifties couture touch.

Rodarte Catwalk Fashion Show New York FW2012

This season the Mulleavy-sisters of Rodarte turned to Australia and its natives for inspiration. The result was a very feminin collection, with references to the red-earth of this continent, Aboriginal art, sheep and British heritage like fishermens coats and sweaters. There were leather jackets lined with shearling, chunky, cropped  sweaters, and a rust-colored skirt-suit. Native influences peeked through in some of their dresses, like a floor-length dress with  ruffles that mixed an aboriginal print with a lace collar.  Some dresses had a boxier, relaxed cut with sloped shoulders, dolman sleeves, and exaggeratedly ladylike Victorian collars, while others in black and white leather were lean and strong.

New were  the accessories, including star brooches buried in the models’ hair, and the debut of their own shoes, many with buckles and straps and lucite heels filled with sand.

 

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