Live From...Milan Fashion Week, Day 3

Alexander McQueen

Without naming any particular names, Sarah Burton drew inspiration from English rock, channelling the rakish charm of iconic frontmen. It was a natural fit for McQueen's signature tailoring and dark flamboyance, but also tapped into the emerging trend for a rock 'n' roll renaissance seen elsewhere in Milan this week.

The look: Rock gods

Silhouette: A mix of lean tailoring and occasional easy volume

Key items: The opening looks are the leanest and meanest –  a pair of elongated straight-cut suit jackets with sharp shoulderlines is paired with straight-leg pants cropped before the break of the boot, their clashing checks and stripes setting the tone for the looks that follow; there are velvet blazers pinched at the waist with single buttons, softer shaped jackets albeit still in that longer length and wide pyjama-style pants. The sometimes foppish flamboyance of the rock god translates into shirts with flyaway neck ties or a long fluid trench coat worn with dusted plum-coloured pants and a printed silk shirt, while the offbeat sartorialism of the English rock star arrives as mix 'n' match three-piece suits; occasionally there is also a hint of early 60s mod styling, with the snug-fitting bomber jackets and nautical striped sweaters

Colour: Optic black and white with shots of red and yellow, tempered with dusty pinks, chalky neutrals and inky midnight blue

Fabric & knit: All the rock 'n' roll favourites are present – velvet, silk, lustrous patterned jacquards, lurex metallics and chest-baring semi sheer knits

Print & pattern: Bicolour humbug stripes (vertical), gingham checks in clashing scales, photoreal flames, diffused stripes

Details & trims: Lurex stripes, a creeping floral embroidery, shell trims

Footwear: Pointed ankle boots some with spectator toe caps, dusty suede Chelsea boots, slippers

Accessories: Foppish floppy hats, structured fedora with velvet ribbon and upward feather trim, round sunglasses with black-tinted lenses and glossy black frames, shell-studded belts

D&G

Print and pattern were at the top of the agenda for Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana's showing for their D&G label. They ploughed a furrow through their scarf drawer, combining traditional silk foulard patterns in clashing combinations and relaxed summery silhouettes.

The look: Summer resort

Silhouette: Unstructured volume

Key items: The relaxed mood of the show permeates the soft drapey pant shapes worked in silk foulard or washed linen, often sporting a denim waistband – a homespun look, which also impacts on pieced and patched denim shirts with mismatched pockets or silk foulard panels and jersey sleeves. Drapey blousons and bombers in richly patterned silks partner soft silk shorts, distressed denim jeans and marled grey or silk foulard tees. Denim effects and washed linen ground the collection for soft unstructured suits, maybe teamed with semi-sheer knits, while a parade of foulard patterned swimwear adds the final flourish

Colour: A multicoloured extravaganza with a grounding of washed denim blues and warm nutmeg browns

Fabric & knit: Silk foulards, washed linen, leather, denim and denim effects, washed drill, jersey

Print & pattern: Extravagent scrolling scarf prints worked in clashing combinations

Details & trims: Cut-off recycled denim waistbands, elastic welt trims, drawstring waists

Footwear: Hand-stitched moccasins in foulard printed or brightly coloured suede

Accessories: Raffia trilbies, foulard printed hats

Gucci

Frida Giannini drew on the sort of  young bohemian aristos-come-rock stars that inhabited Saville Row and private members clubs like Scotch of St James in the 60s and 70s for her spring/summer inspiration. The result was a beautifully crafted collection that played with traditional values and gave them a modern youthful twist.

The look: Gentlemen’s club

Silhouette: Classic with a modern twist

Key items: This collection was built on classic wardrobe pieces, revamped with modern detailing in the snap hems on skinny pants, the collarless necklines on soft jacquard shirts, piped pockets and covered buttons on neat SB tailored blazers, thermoseal details on lean colour-blocked cabans and safari jackets or the micro check lining on a washed nappa coat. Pant shapes veer from easy rise and pleated to ankle-skimming and skinny, teamed with marled or melanged knits and a raft of luxe leathers from quilted bombers to smooth Harringtons and sinuous shirt jackets. And for evening those dashing young dudes are perfectly suited and booted in graphic checked tuxedos, blazers and silk faille pants or rock-star gold brocades and sexy lurex knits

Colour: Sand neutrals, inky blues, steel greys with pops of brick red, aubergine and sky blue for shirtings. Black and white or old gold for evening

Fabric & knit: A twist on the traditionals with pied-de-poule suitings, micro checks, Prince of Wales checks – new in waterproofed nylon – black-and-white checks, suede, washed nappa, velvet and brocade. Textured marled knits, lurex knits

Print & pattern: Woven checks rather than print and pattern

Details & trims: Contrast top collars, piped flapped pockets and covered buttons, thermoseal details creating graphic contrast on casual jackets and outerwear, back vents, buckled tab details

Footwear: Classic crocodile loafers with horsebit buckles, contrast heavy-sole derby lace-ups

Accessories: Maxi travel bags in crocodile or rawhide and canvas. Leather framed sunglasses

Versace

   

There was an experimentation with volume and proportion that felt new for Versace this season, as Donatella played with shrunken uppers and new fuller bottomweights, which, after winter's severe and strict offer, felt better for it.

Add to that Donatella's bold injection of summer colour and several of the house signatures - such as baroque motifs and Greek key prints - and the show steamrollered into a fresh and successful position.

The look: Italian stallion

Silhouette: A new focus on volume

Key items: Jackets including a plethora of bombers and bikers in a variety of fabrications feature narrow waists drawn taut around the torso to create upper volume, while pants and long shorts feature triple-pleats to bring this same sense of volume to the bottom silhouette. Tailoring also feels fresh, with new proportions seeing broad DB suits with low-breaking buttoning or elongated SB suits drawing the eye downward. Elsewhere key pieces include sleeveless tanks in glazed wet-look knits, a suede-panelled Western shirt and a slimmer trouser shape with bondage style buckles running the length of the leg

Colour: Donatella wreaked havoc with summer's colour card, going all out with shocking brights of azure blue, canary yellow, bold Kelly green, coral red with hot pink, and salmon, worked against steel and slate greys, sandy neutrals and rich tan leather; watch also for crisp resort white and lustrous black as key anchors

Fabric & knit: Light summer suitings including Prince of Wales check and dogstooth, crisp neat cottons, printed silks, perforated suede, slicked leather, mesh, open stitch knits, engineered knits, wet-look glazed knits, sheer patterened knits

Print & pattern: Greek key placements, optical Greek key repeat, signature curlicues and baroque leaves

Details & trims: Gold eyelets in placement formation, medusa-head buttons and medallions, multiple buckles

Footwear: Leather sandals decorated with Medusa-head medallions, multi-strap patent gladiator sandals styled with socks, smart suede loafers

Accessories: Smart leather holdalls, hugely oversized totes, squared sunglasses with metal greek key detail across the flat topline, ribbon key chains

Nicole Farhi

Nicole Farhi returned to the men's runways with a sparsely styled collection of clean minimal silhouettes, with an emphasis on functionality, teamed with innovative fabrications. The result was ineffably modern and clinical with a lightweight fiunctional feel.

The look: Modern minimalism

Silhouette: Clean simple unstructured layers and neat tailoring

Key items: This collection emphasises fabric innovation and functional detailing through strong tee-shaped tops and simple half-sleeved shirts overlaid with clear plastic, teamed with straight-cut basic pant shapes. Bonded Aran effects bring a tailored blazer shape up to date, while casual double-zip jackets and trench coats conceal matching mesh inners. Knitwear veers between simple textured ladder stitch tunics to a V-neck cabled tank layered over a ciré tee. This key silhouette is also worked in Neoprene with a contrasting mesh back, while mesh shorts take on an airy summer feel and functional parkas and double-zip casual jackets provide lightweight outerwear options


Colour: White dominates for a clean clinical feel, teamed with sandy neutrals, pale pebble greys, taupe, ink and black with accents of bright yellow and sage

Fabric & knit: Innovate fabrics have dominated the last few seasons at Nicole Farhi – the sort of fabrics you need to touch and feel before their compexity becomes a reality, with papery cotton, Neoprene and bonded effects, clear plastics, cire nylons, airy mesh, smooth flat jacketweights contrasting with canvas

Details & trims: Detailing takes on a new emphasis, with mesh inners, contrast fabric facing, knitted welts, double-ended zips, binding trims

Footwear: Contrast sole derbys with exaggerated rands

Accessories: Plastcic clip harnesses, sou’wester hoods

Etro

Provence and the Mediterranean coast proved fertile ground for Etro's spring/summer collection, providing a landscape of opportunity for different looks, ranging from nautical to bohemian intelligensia and Riviera playboys.

The look: A year in Provence

Silhouette: Louche, layered and unstructured

Key items: Easy oversized trench coats and soft duster coats are the perfect lightweight throw-on coat shapes to offset softly structured SB and DB tailoring layered over paisley shirts and tunics, or even sporty nylon cagoules in an offbeat sporty/formal mix. Textured knits are a key item for next summer and here they are worked with easy plaid shorts and printed paisley pants. There are nautical connotations too in the piped-edge SB blazers and striped knits, while colourful pattern mixes and relaxed separates speak of a more artistic look at play

Colour: The Provencal landscape colours a palette spanning warm earthy neutrals and sand-toned pales through to an ocean of marine and washed sky blues, with vivid accents of mimosa yellow, poppy red and lavender

Fabric & knit: Linen forms the core to the collection, coming in muted micro checks, windowpane plaids and washed plains, along with two-tone suitings, mohair, Madras plaids, cottons, nylon or ciré, silk, suede and textured cotton-blend knits


Print & pattern: Paisley is a signature of this house, and for spring/summer 2012 it is worked in warm muted colours or in bold bicolour combinations in a dark motif on a white ground, which looks new and fresh. Paisley motifs even scroll in faded tatoo-like patterns across fine-gauge knits. Elsehere, simple coin spots proliferate across shirts and even suiting, while multicoloured checks clash in mismatched combinations 


Details & trims: Nautical piping or contrast-bound edges

Footwear: Tasselled or kiltie-fringed loafers, classic loafers


Accessories: Wide-brimmed unstructured straw hats, flowing scarves, woven or plaited leather belts, striped knitted ties, Paisley printed leather totes, leather bags

Iceberg

Achieving the ultimate smart-casual mix was the aim at Iceberg, where cardigan-jackets replaced tailored blazers and traditional wool suitings such herringbone and dogstooth arrived crumpled in thin summer weights.

The look: Smart-casual

Silhouette: Comfortably lean, unstructured

Key items: The knitted 2B blazer is undeniably the star piece, as snug and comfortable as a cardigan but with definite tailored constructions. These are teamed with casual pants – either flat-front or with a double-pleat creating roomy volume at the crotch - both options rolled or cropped above the ankle. Summer styling relies on layering contrast-coloured tees with cutaway or irregular necklines, while a few sporty outerwear options including yacht jackets and flyweight nylon parkas are typical of the brand. Suits are deconstructed to achieve that smart-casual tone – a pair of Prince of Wales checked trousers exited with a snug-fitting Western shirt, its matching DB jacket arriving in the next look

Colour: The palette is built on tonal ranges of blue – from sky and ultramarine through to navy, and grey – from ash to slate – that are punctuated with flashes of bright pillarbox red and sunshine yellow

Fabric & knit: Cotton, silk, marled jersey, fine-weight suitings, pique knits, silky nylon, Prince of Wales check, herringbone and dogstooth wool suitings, thick double-faced wool, knitted Breton stripes, chunky knits, cable stitches, smooth leather

Print & pattern: Overdyed denim-effect treatments in black or blue, dip-dyed jacket edges

Details & trims: Untrimmed edges, cutaway T-shirt necklines, coloured waistbands, coloured knit strips on the inside of jacket and cardigan closures, contrast colour drawcords

Footwear: Casual blue or grey suede lace-ups with rubbed/stained toes, chunky crepe-soled kiltie-fringed suede loafers

Accessories: Bookish optical, faded leather holdall, tricolour leather satchel, a coloured nylon utility bag

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Live From... Milan Fashion Week, Day 2

D&G

It was a riotous rave over at D&G where the colours and lettered logos of 80s clubwear provided Milan with an awakening electric shock. More than slightly reminiscent of Missoni’s mis-step of a spring/summer 2011 show, this collection tackled the same taste issues, while keeping it buzzy, youthful and fun – which after all are the hallmarks of the D&G brand. 

The look: 90s logo mania
Silhouette: Tube thin with oversized outerwear
Key items: Knee-length knitted tube dresses and stretchy pencil skirts – some with a longer chiffon skirt trim - were recurring items, as were cropped sweaters, printed leggings and skinny pants; elsewhere there were kangaroo-pocketed sloppy sweaters, untucked silk shirts and loose silk cardigans. Outerwear was oversized, arriving either as big statement parkas in fur or printed silk with wildly coloured fur lining, or low-breaking DB boyfriend blazers worked as mannish coats. For party time, there were straight-cut sheer black dresses cut just below the knee, embellished with large-scale sequinned letters. The finale parade offered oversized silk tees or fitted cotton T-shirts worn with cloud-like marabou miniskirts
Colours: Crazy multi-colourings - neon brights on graphic black, candy colours on marl grey
Fabric & knit: Printed silk and chiffon, letter logoed jacquard knits, shrunken wool, stretch cotton jersey, fur and teddy-bear fleece, marabou feathers, cotton, habutai silk
Print & pattern: Bands of random letters in multicolours
Details & trims: Fur or printed silk coat linings, sequinned letters, deep V-necklines, chiffon pussy bows, kangaroo pockets, drawstrings
Footwear: Wedge-heeled hi-top sneakers with a contrast toe, in bright colours or black and white
Accessories: Small chain-handled bags carried as clutches (the Anja bag), bijoux jewellery with big letter charms, wispy patterned scarves

Prada

With Prada it's foolish to tout just one period of reference, because here things are never that obviously thematic. Still, this season’s sleeveless shifts, drop-waisted girlishness and colour-blocked checks did hint at a 60s infusion. 

The look: 60s dolly with a girlish subtext
Silhouette: Short and drop-waisted
Key items: Fit-and-flare coat-dresses, straight-cut shifts, and collared shirt dresses all featured a dropped waist, accentuated with a low-placed belt or martingale; sleeveless shifts were offered in colour-blocked paillettes, some featuring fur trims or a short capelet over the shoulders; a series of oversized dome-shaped coats in polished snakeskin with wide cropped sleeves and exaggerated clover-leaf lapels
Colour: Black and navy with lipstick red or teal; white, cosmetique nude blush, vapour grey; autumnal colours of marigold yellow, burnt orange and russet
Fabric & knit: Bonded wool, teddy fur, organza, large transparent and colour-tinted paillettes, polished snakeskin
Print & pattern: Large-scale windowpane checks and coloured Mondrian-style grids
Details & trims: Silver buttons on outerwear, oversized childlike plastic buttons and buckles on dresses, contrast collars, low cut-away backs and buttoned martingales, transparent tinted oversized pailettes layered as scales, fur trims and sleeves, oversized clover-leaf lapels on coats, off-centre buttoning
Footwear: Tall snakeskin boots – some ending in a new mid-calf length, with shaped heels; suede sock boots with faux Mary Jane shoe
Accessories: Sporty skull caps fastened under the chin, goggle-like tinted bug-eye sunglasses, short elastic-cuffed suede gloves, fox fur stoles, hand-strapped clutch bags

Albino

“I was inspired by New York and the American art scene from the 50s through to the 80s, Rothko to Haring,” designer Albino D'Amato told WGSN. But when the collection did arrive, those strong arts influences were barely readable, save for a few multicoloured spots and stripes towards the end. Instead the clothes acted as a blank canvas for simple shape, used to promote an exploration into grainy, furry or tufted texture. “There was a lot of focus on texture because the shapes are really simple – straight tubes or a slight trapeze, set against texture – there were no plain fabrics.” Albino D'Amato 

The look: 50s-infused ladylike dressing
Silhouette: Simple shapes cut away from the body and soft structured swing
Key items: The collection worked best at its simplest – tweedy T-shirt dresses, a single-sleeved wool tee worn with skinny drainpipe pants or any of the collarless swing coats; elsewhere there were cropped jackets hemmed in fox, fur pencil skirts, tailored and cropped pants featuring tufted knee panels and dresses with cut-away backs and an over-complicated ruffled tier falling from the back of the shoulder
Colour: Shaded nuances of brown and cream; dense saxe blue, multicoloured prints on black – tomato red, emerald green, magenta and light blue
Fabric & knit: Glittery lurex-shot tweed, grainy herringbone and houndstooth tweed, wool jacquard, dense ribbed knits, double-folded neoprene, mohair, fil coupé lurex tinsel, silk, stiff wool gazar, fox
Print & pattern: Painterly macro polka dots and large-scale stripes in diagonal or chevron placements – both on black grounds
Details & trims: Cut-away backs hanging away from the body, tufted fibres used in placement panels on pants or banded skirt hems, faux skirt-and-top detailing on the back of dresses, randomly positioned fox fur trims, cut fil coupé tinsel-like fringing, kimono sleeves
Footwear: Pointed courts with skinny ankle strap, with textile uppers

Luisa Beccaria

With a strong eveningwear sensibility, Luisa Beccaria never usually strays too far from her delicately ethereal aesthetic. But there was a notable new drive for daywear this season, which focused on tailoring and neat knitwear, as she bathed her girls in a palette of shimmering gold, inspired by Byzantine mosaics.

The look: Pretty as a picture
Silhouette: Sinuously feminine in demure lengths
Key items: Two tailored skirts suits opened the show – one sleeved and one sleeveless, both long-line and trimmed in fur, later came wide-leg pants or pencil skirts topped with textured cardigans or a polo-neck knit tank, and a host of elegant outerwear - from a through-belted cape to an elongated wool pea coat in a glazed silver finish and a softly fluted midi-length coat with a scrolling ruffle collar. Cocktailwear offered a lustrous gold duchesse dress with gathered waist, a tailored off-the-shoulder sheath with box detail and a pantsuit in gilded floral jacquard. Despite the extended daywear offer, eveningwear is Beccaria’s forte and this season she offered exquisite fluted gowns in finest Chantilly lace and barely there embroidered tulle, but a couple of options in millefeuille organza ribbons and tiered plissé frills looked overworked and awkward
Colour: Gold and metallic sunbeam pales, ivory, blush, ballet pink, mauve and lavender
Fabric & knit: Herringbone tweed, compact wool, glittery knits, taffeta, duchesse, gold Chantilly lace, crepe, georgette, ribbons
Print & pattern: Vintage roses, foiled gold overpainting
Details & trims: Lettuce-edged sunburst pleats, jewelled shoulder tabs, scrolling collars on coats, gold sequinned embroideries, cut-away backs, millefeuille layers
Footwear: Block-heeled platforms with an ankle strap in mixed metallic leathers
Accessories: Gold lace headscarves and bejewelled tulle chokers

Bluegirl

Blugirl was onto a winner this season. An elegantly grown-up collection ticked several of next winter's trend boxes, albeit it for the more sophisticated customer, with a palette of vivid colour, luxe-touch fabrics and ladylike silhouettes.

The look: A day at the races
Silhouette: Elegantly ladylike and tailored
Key items: Outerwear was a key feature of the collection, with tailored SB coats, DB trenches and subtle military styling, as well as the cape in every manifestation - from a sassy shoulder cape in green shearling to decorous tailored looks. Knitwear was casually styled, coming as knitted cardigan jackets with suede or rabbit fur trim or as luxe cashmere fine-gauge hooded cardigans – all layered with slick to-the-knee pencil skirts and cropped jodhpur-style pants. Print and pattern had an equine feel, worked as silk blouses or soft-waisted dresses with the house's signature skin prints coming into play as an alternative option. And for evenings celebrating in the winner's enclosure, a series of little black dresses in the finest chiffon and Chantilly lace with capes of layered organza ribbon
Colour: A fulsome palette that spanned the season's autumnal colours with camel, tan, all shades of pumpkin and soft caper green, moving through to vibrant jockey-silk brights like cobalt, strawberry pink and daffodil yellow, all grounded with black
Fabric & knit: The emphasis was on luxe cashmere offset with tactile shearling, leather and furs, with silk twill for dresses and blouses and delicate chiffon and Chantilly lace for evening looks
Print & pattern: An equine print featuring bridle and saddle motifs; a painterly conversational pattern of horses and their riders; re-coloured leopard prints
Details & trims: Crystal trims, fur trims, suede edging on knitwear
Footwear: Snakeskin ankle strap high-heeled courts, slouchy suede and fur boots
Accessories: Coloured clutch bags and purses, tasselled necklaces, long gloves, three-quarter-length socks, double skinny snakeskin belts, colour-blocked high-crown trilbies

MaxMara

Clean, modern and simple were the hallmarks of MaxMara's deluxe winter looks, with subtle rustic overtones in the form of plaid and check, kilted shapes and casual mink-trimmed parkas. But it was the minimal lines and subtle fabric mixing that stamped the collection with its luxurious simple look. 

The look: Modern rustic
Silhouette: Lean and minimal
Key items: Outerwear ruled the day. Strong minimal silhouettes were stripped of buttons or detailing, with lean duffel hybrids, asymmetric-wrap tailored silhouettes caught with a single strap and buckle at the hip, a narrow biker-inspired coat and the softer appeal of a fringed blanket wrap. Neat-waisted suits continued the sparse feel, clasped at the waist with a flat-buckled belt, and dresses were worked in tonal fabric mixes of brushed wool with matt cashmere panels in shades of white. Simple bustier dresses and wrap skirts came in sequinned plaids and there was a final luxe touch in the parkas and coats with their mink skirts – all teamed with simple jersey leggings
Colour: A muted palette of cool whiter white, paper white and putty added a quiet reflective feel to the look, working well with the collection's minimal shapes. Punctuated with inky blues, black, camel and classic flannel grey and the softer accents of poudre, bois de rose and primrose yellow
Fabric & knit: Luxury wools were top of the agenda here with brushed finishes contrasted with the smoothest cashmere and double-faced effects. Leather and ponyskin, mink, calfskin and lamb added to the luxe appeal of the collection
Print & pattern: Checks and plaid reworked in sequins and beaded effects
Details & trims: Flat patent or leather straps with silver buckles, fringed trims
Footwear: Flat winter white lace-ups with a white sole, ponyskin courts
Accessories: Hand-held flat-bottomed bags in leather or ponyskin

Fendi

Karl Lagerfeld took a walk in the country for his latest collection for Fendi, albeit it a rather sophisticated one. Rustic looks were full of innovative fur, autumnal-shaded wool and mismatched texture. 

The look: A walk in the Black Forest
Silhouette: Multilayered and A-line
Key items: Throw-on fur coats and gilets brought a luxe touch to Lagerfeld's layered wool and tweed. Boxy A-line coats and short swingy jackets were overlaid with statement pockets, ruched elasticated sleeves and wide revers. Soft dirndl culottes and cropped cuffed pants came with simple shell tops, decorated with a frisson of bias ruffle at the neck in a sculpted take on a jabot, while flecked sweaters and a knitted tracksuit – incongruously teamed with heeled Mary Janes – added in the cocooning comfort factor. For evening it was back to black, with prim-and-proper dresses in lustred sequins offset with the sheerest tulle sleeves pinpricked with microscopic gold beading
Colour: A rich autumnal palette of wood-shaded browns and neutrals, teamed with golden ochre, sapphire blue and burgundy with a grounding of black
Fabric & knit: Luxe furs worked in feathered bands of muted colour, tipped with glow-worm pricks of light or tufted into tweedy effects layered over dense bouclé, soft cashmere, double-faced wool, leather and flannel. Sheer blouses and lustrous satin offered a more decorative look along with low-shine sequins for evening
Print & pattern: Checks on sheer grounds
Details & trims: Ruffled jabot necklines, vivid-coloured buttonholes, metallic buttons, contrast piling, alligator cuffs, fabric pockets on knitted bottomweights
Footwear: High-heeled brogued Mary Janes in brightly coloured patent
Accessories: Ribbed tights added a splash of colour, felted hairbands, felt tote bags with raw leather straps, boxy hand-held bags

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Live From... Milan Fashion Week, Day 2

D&G

From chalet girls to flower girls in just one season, D&G was in full bloom yesterday, with a parade of country-cottage florals and tablecloth checks in an unashamedly girly collection.
The look: Pretty picnic with a touch of gypsy romance
Silhouette: Flirty tiers and wide-cut pants
Key items: Bloomers are fast becoming a collection staple for D&G, and this season they arrived either as a voluminous linen pair or tiny gingham versions peeking out from behind apron skirts. The wide-legged straight-cut gaucho pant was also a key item played out in repeat through various fabrications. Both were teamed with cropped peasant blouses, strappy sun tops with ruffled peplums, or printed button-down shirts. Elsewhere there were floral dungarees, flared jeans, playsuits, trapeze smock dresses pulled off the shoulders, and a denim pinafore layered over a rara-skirted gingham dress. The signature finale was a series of floaty chiffon maxidresses in gypsy tiers, with pussy bows, blouson sleeves or ruffled necklines
Colour: Red, white, denim blue and a raft of delicate pastel shades as grounds to the floral prints Fabric & knit: Linen, chintz cottons and poplins, rustic crochet, dark denim, lace, printed chiffon, gingham and Vichy checks, PVC
Print & pattern: Disney-licensed Snow White placement T-shirt graphics and a host of garden florals - roses, hydrangeas, freesias, violets and mimosas - overblown, ditsy or sprigged, worked on pale grounds such as washed sage green, sky blue or dusky pink
Footwear: Cork wedge platform wellies with ribbed-knit turnover cuff, extreme platforms with woven wedge soles featuring a corsage at the ankle
Accessories: Printed headscarves; oversized canvas shoppers, totes and slouchy shoulder bags; five-pocket concertina-construction Lily Twist handbag in printed florals on white ground


 Haute

This season sees a new creative direction for Haute under the steerage of British design duo Marcus Constable and Catherine Brickhill.
The look: "Dress Sculpture" was the collection title
Silhouette: Bursts of sculptural volume, occasionally short and swingy
Key items: Voluminous DB cocoon coats, storm-caped utility jacket and gilet, abbreviated tux jacket with chiffon faux-layer, pencil skirt with sculptural fin at the side, or a short and swingy skirt with large godets; ruched and pleated cotton jersey tops; cocktail dresses including a tailored satin sheath or sweetheart-shaped babydolls; bustier maxidresses and a tailored cigarette-pant jumpsuit with a fin working asymmetrically across the torso and the hip
Colour: Faux nudes, washed saxe blue, navy, silver and grey, gold, black and white Fabric & knit: Unprocessed cotton, silk guaze, striped silks and linen, organza, satin crepe, cotton jersey, metallic taffeta 
Print & pattern: Graphic black-and-white Art Deco-influenced linear pattern, an all-over painterly Baroque pattern
Details & trims: Origami-inspired pin-tucking, pleating and ruching; sculptural fins and folds, raw and frayed edges, silver paillettes with short beaded fringe
Footwear: Pointed satin platform Mary Janes with spike heel; multi-strap courts
Accessories: Skinny black leather waist belts


 Maurizio Pecorara

A bang-on-trend hit from day two of the Milan shows, Maurizio Pecoraro's collection was inspired by the late Yves Saint Laurent's work from the 1970s. The clothes traversed jet-set poolside chic to colourful Studio 54 disco glam.
"It's 70s bohemia! I went to Paris on holiday and saw the recent YSL retrospective and I was blown away. On my return, my dream was to continue my passion for what I had seen," Maurizio Pecoraro told WGSN.
The look: A 70s hit paradeSilhouette: Midi and full lengths with the occasional super-short surprise
Key items: Midi-length pencil skirts, high-waisted flares or hotpants teamed with halter tops, shells with single-shoulder waterfall ruffle and swingy caped tops. Breezy sheer kaftans, swingy skater dresses, maxi tent dresses and a finale of white shirts and smocks with decorated yokes or bibs
Colours: Creamy latte neutrals, pale gold and white were the cornerstone colours, punctuated with pops of orange, violet, mustard, magenta, cobalt, sunshine and turquoise
Fabric & knit: Macramé, crochet lace, linen, muslin cheesecloth, matelassé, metallic organza, super-fine nylons, soft raffia
Print & pattern: A watery floral degradé, a black-on-neutral mono-colour floral
Details & trims: Hand finishing, raw edges, crystallised all-over sequins, handmade flower appliqués crafted from macramé and decorated with semi-precious stones; large sculpted covered-wire corsages
Footwear: Flat platform sandals
Accessories: Fringed messenger bags, wide-brimmed straw sunhats, leather or suede cummerbunds, multiple beaded bracelets

Prada

Miuccia Prada upped the ante on the second day of the Milan shows, sending out an exuberant exercise in colour and print that took fashion back to basic building blocks in terms of colour and shape. 
“It was all about workwear and cotton and very simple. I used all the shapes from the menswear. Everything was in Japanese cotton. But then I wanted to do something like a musical. Something more bold and feminine. Something between minimal and baroque. Something more brave,” Miuccia Prada told WGSN. 
The look: Playful and simple with the emphasis on colour and print
Silhouette: Elongated and lean with the simplest shapes reworked through colour and pattern 
Key items: Prada played with the simplest shapes - boxy zipped jackets, easy pencil skirts, cropped boxy tops, V-neck uniform-like tops and shift dresses, strappy ruffled-hem sundresses, round-shouldered 2SB tailoring - and reworked them in various permutations of vivid colour, prints and stripes
Colour: Like the silhouettes, colour went back to basics. Think paintbox primary brights, poppy, cobalt and jade, offset with clashing fuchsia and tangerine, a deeper pine green and inky blues, accented with a flash of crisp white and a grounding of sooty black
Fabric & knit: Simple honest cottons and canvas
Print & pattern: A riotous and irreverent mix of simple stripes, with hand-drawn Baroque scrolls and cherub imagery, cartoon monkeys and bananas, along with a Josephine Baker-style dancing-lady motif
Details & trims: Flounced hemlines on simple shift shapes, mini ruffles at necklines, pop-pom trimmed hemlines
Footwear: Deep platforms and wedged heels defined the season’s footwear, worked in stripes and chequerboard patterns with laced uppers or simple ankle straps. Meanwhile, 20s-style T-bars and Mary Janes came in striped basketweaves with round buckles
Accessories: Fox-fur stoles were brightly coloured, and bags were worked in the palette of vibrant matching brights or simple stripes, with chunky double-handle shapes, envelope-style shoulderbags and smaller purse effects. Eyewear took up the Baroque theme with curlicue frames, and hats appeared as huge striped sombreros.


Fendi

A breezy summery look from Karl Lagerfeld, who addressed the season’s trend for all things 70s with his romantically inspired showing full of easy smocks, drawstrings and flowing sleeves. 
The look: 70s romance
Silhouette: Soft and blousy
Key items: Smock shapes proliferated from easy drawstring-waist dresses to off-the-shoulder bloused tops, often teamed with a full mid-calf skirt or softly cut wide pants. Caped sleeves added volume, and there was a play on hemlines with high-low effects and gentle bubble hems. Tailoring came as a short-sleeved pantsuit, and shirtdresses featured wide square-cut sleeves and longer-length fluted skirts
Colour: Crisp white married with a palette of cool blues that ran the gamut from cornflower through ultramarine and marine to a range of pretty aquas. At the opposite end of the spectrum, there were warm sunny apricots and peachy oranges with a flash of red and violet
Fabric & knit: Cottons, waxed finishes, silk, grid checks, hopsack weaves
Print & pattern: An engineered scorched-paper print, pressed flower-inspired floral patterns
Details & trims: Drawstring and elastic-cased details
Footwear: Block-heeled ankle straps, chunky wedged platforms
Accessories: Bi-colour bags in grained and smooth leathers. Leather belts, striped bags, alligator-trimmed bags, fur stoles, scarves decorated with miniscule fur pom-poms


Luisa Beccaria

There may have been nothing directionally new, but it was a deliciously feminine and highly commercial collection from Luisa Beccaria, full of the kind of pretty dresses, skirts and tops that uptown girls will love to wear.
The look: Feminine and romantic
Silhouette: Soft and fragile, waisted or softly draped
Key items: Soft blouses and skirts were key components of Beccaria’s fragile feminine looks, with fluttering fluted sleeves and smock shapes teamed with delicate A-line or easy pencil skirts. Dresses came as wrap shirtwaisters and pretty sundresses, or for evening, floaty draped chiffon columnar shapes. Pleat shorts and crochet knit pants-and-cardie combo added a sporty twist while still retaining the collection’s overtly feminine edge
Colour: The palette mirrored the romantic mood, with shades of white layered with pale poudré pink, rose, raspberry and peach, palest primrose and cappuccino
Fabric & knit: Fabrics were delicate and fragile, reiterating the collection’s feminine mood, with organzas, silk chiffons, eyelets, cloqué, weightless Chantilly lace, cottons and linen, and fine-gauge knits
Print & pattern: Micro florals in shades of washed red, blue and green worked in pretty stripes on a soft white ground; mixed florals on pink grounds and a splashy poppy print
Details & trims: Self-coloured embroidery on organza used as inserts, cut-work hems, pintucks, knotted details on caped sleeves, multiple ruffles
Footwear: Stain wedged espadrilles, T-bars
Accessories: Suede belts with corsage trims, wide corset belts, canvas poppy-print bag


Sportmax

A youthfully inspired collection from Sportmax, who bucked the trend for romantic and flowing 70s looks in favour of something sharper and more graphic, with crisp swingy 60s shapes and a clean-cut colour palette.
The look: Swinging 60s
Silhouette: Short and sharp with simple trapeze lines
Key items: The trench manifested itself as a swingy crisp white outerwear piece, as well as appearing as a sleeveless dress and a bustier over a simple white sleeveless shirt, while a trapeze-line PVC mac was another stand-out coat shape. Elsewhere it was all about youthful babydoll dresses - best in dark-washed denim - culottes and belted jackets, tunics, fluid pants and A-line shift dresses
Colour: White and inky blue accented with poppy red, strawberry, hot pink and orange, a flash of chrome yellow and black
Fabric & knit: Simple crisp cottons, denim, broderie and eyelet in varying patterns, wet-look patent, suede and organza, paillettes 
Print & pattern: Stripes, a silhouette butterfly print, a collaged check and stripe pattern in satin weave sheers
Details & trims: Metallic applied butterflies, guipure lace applied butterflies, snaps and zips
Footwear: Strappy courts with ankle ties
Accessories: Boxy bags on long leather straps, sporty belts

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