#red valentino
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New York Fashion Week - Day 1
Here it begins, the tour de force of the fashion weeks. And now that New York has inaugurated the season with the first day, I can’t wait to tell you everything about my favourite collections.
It was a nice start with Coach (photo 1) which presented a style which I would define as indie: leather coats with furry edges, long plain silhouettes with different layers of - black, of course - garments, including long skirts and some oversize knitwear. Cool in the streets.
The urban style of Nicholas K was presented this time in a very feminine translation, with chiffon, pinstripe manly fabric used in delicate draping and shapes which enhanced the woman body. About Jonathan Simkhai’s collection there were some things I really liked and some which I really DIDN’T. For sure I loved the injection of modernity given by the straight lines over the first lacy outfits; I completely loved the juxtaposition of lines in some of the other looks, like for example in the sky blue, black and white sweater, as well as the crisscrossing of thin lines in the last gowns. I hated the champagne gold fabric though, I thought it completely destroyed the collection looking extremely cheap.
It was an unusual inspiration for BCBCMAXAZRIA (photo 2) but this tribal native American atmosphere really nailed it: fringes, ethnic prints, everything declined in the usual vocabulary used by Max Azria, where femininity is the first word to know. Loved the juxtaposition of colours which is not very usual with the designer, and it was a good step outside his comfort zone.
Red Valentino (photo 3) the young line of the Italian maison always gives great satisfaction with the minimum effort. Yes, effortless is maybe the best adjective to descrive this collection made of pastel colours - powdery pink and baby blue as first - simple silhouettes, mini dresses and checked shirts. Loved the bold prints and the jumpsuit which are definitely the coolest outfit for a woman-to-be.
I kinda loved the first half of Creatures of the Wind collection (photo 4), and it was a pity as it could be a great one if it wasn’t for the second part where a very toned-down atmosphere toned down my enthusiasm as well. Loved the jackets with the raw stitching in bold colours, loved the nude coats and I also appreciated the metallic print which made me think 60s in a sort of 80s revisitation.
Costello Tagliapietra (photo 5) probably had the best collection of the day. It was menswear for women and it has never looked so sexy! There were braces, high-waist trousers, dungarees, overalls. It was kinda schoolboy too but there was always space for some extremely sweet and elegant dresses, and overall, despite the differences, everything worked well together. It was a great, polished, pleasing collection.
Sea proposed a collection of basic pieces with an edge and some prints here and there which are never a bad idea. But Honor (photo 6) was another one having a great collection. I always love Honor collections because they all take you to a world of fairytale. This time, though, the protagonist was not the princess, but the mistress, the evil witch. Yet, it was a pretty fashionable witch. I loved the fact the brand is always recognisable, especially in its prints looking like shades projected by a night lamp, with a sort of children-like irony attached to it - we are talking about fairytales after all - which definitely makes you smile - aren’t those little whales extremely cute? And I also loved how mature it can go without losing its freshness - look at the red chiffon gown, it looks like it’s made of flames. Exquisite collection, even if I preferred the first part and didn’t like the purple shade they used in some of the looks; it read old in my mind.
From Norma Kamali I particularly appreciated the first grey denim patchwork looks and I loved the sporty vibe of the overall collection; however, it went a little 80s disco-dance at the end. Creatures of Comfort (photo 7) instead opted for flowing dresses and skirts everywhere, but nothing was too ethereal - just look at the boldly coloured check fabrics. It was energetic, even the bows adorning dresses, trousers and tops were large and in-your-face, but still feminine and gentle. Great balance throughout the whole collection, even between pretty basic looks and more eccentric ones.
Marissa Webb was all about classic shapes, different layers in different materials - wool and chiffon for example - I loved the coordinates in grey, they had a very professional attitude and made me think of a strong career woman. The real miracle of the first day happened with Desigual: I don’t know what changed from the last time I told myself ‘Give another chance to the brand, take a look around’ when entering the store while I was on holiday in Vienna. After that time I promised myself I would have never put my nose inside another Desigual store EVER. But after this collection I might change my mind: I actually liked most of the pieces. Loved the aztec prints, I loved the fact they stopped using thousands of different -ugly - prints in the same outfit - and I usually love mixing prints, but that was just too much! - and I loved as well that they quitted writing awful messages on their t-shirts and dresses. That’s a good new start.
Tome (photo 8) chose the coat as the centrepiece of the whole collection, translated into different ideas: first the camel woolen trench coat in different lengths and proportions, then the leather jacket - in bright lemon yellow - over an elegant dress.
I would like to close my review and the first day of NY collections with a designer which I’ve never really thought about, Rachel Antonoff (photo 9). I didn’t remember her - but after all, Valentino was not successful at the very beginning of his career, so this doesn’t mean anything - but I loved her schoolgirl aesthetic. There were some very subtle references to school in these first collections, but Antonoff was the only one to take it to the extreme and make this reference clear - her model was definitely dressed in a school uniform - and it was cool. What I particularly appreciated was the subtle reference to biology - is the girl behind this collection a biology student? First, from the little dresses with the front printed with the stylisation of the reproductive system in one case and with some lungs in another instance; then the print for the last looks, depicting fruit and flowers with biological precision. School can be fashionable then. Interesting.
xxx
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Pink Carnations: Emily Jackson of Ivory Lane couldn’t look any more sophisticated in this Red Valentino jacket and classic A.L.C. dress!
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