Milan Fashion Week is just kicking off and, while London, New York, Paris and Milan are being teased by next spring’s styles as they prepare for months of wearing boots, coats and layers, here in Bangkok we can bypass Fall/Winter (unless we’re in an office with particularly harsh air-con) and step straight into spring style. Yay!
We’re currently halfway through the big four fashion weeks, with New York and London having drawn to a close and Paris following on from Milan. What have we learnt so far?
New York
Forget the wispy and whimsical go-to styles for spring. It’s going to be a touch love affair for Bangkokians to end, but the time has come to put those frills and florals in the back of the wardrobe.
Instead, bold colors, edgy textiles and unusual silhouettes take the spotlight.
Oscar de la Renta was, as always, a favorite. He showcased sweeping monochrome gowns with surprising leather and latex details. This kinky edge was continued at Alexander Wang, whose designs were finished with latex, matte snakeskin and stiff wool details. Some pieces were even glow-in-the-dark, adding to the badass look that emerged as a trend over the week.
But, this is New York fashion week, so it’s never going to be all-out whips and chains – just a few subtle details that’ll make those walking past you want to reach out and have a stroke. I don’t know about you, but that’s always the look I go for anyway.
Block color was another repeated trend, seen at Oscar de la Renta, Victoria Beckham, Narciso Rodriguez and Diane Von Furstenberg. Another really surprising – but very welcome – trend was flat shoes. That’s right, ladies, we can give our bunions a break for a season or two because Carolina Herrera, Victoria Beckham and Marc Jacobs have made it fashionable. Just don’t get too used to it, we’re pretty sure Fall/Winter 2013 will see the return of footwear that make pointe shoes look like a doddle to walk in and hurt even when you’re sitting down.
London
London has always been the underdog of the big four fashion cities. As a Brit, I hold a little candle for it, but there’s no doubt it’s the experimental, unruly teenager of the fashion world.
London is artsy and fun, as designers such as Henry Holland, Christopher Kane and Antoni & Alison continually prove. This season was no exception. Anna Wintour took to the front row of Christopher Kane, where the quirky detailing trend we admired in New York was taken up a notch. Nuts, bolts, spikes and even masking tape were just some of the fun details added to designs.
Slightly more wearable, but no less fun, Antoni & Alison celebrated 25 years with a stunning collection of wearable artworks. Dresses were embellished with ink drawings, spray paint, charcoal smudges, felt tips and collage. The result was wildly colorful and surprisingly elegant.
Up-and-coming accessories designer Sophia Webster made her mark with a Barbie-inspired debut collection. Models stood in life-size Barbie boxes revealing a collection of bright and bold girlie shoe and bag designs, including Aztec lace-up thigh boots, transparent flats with pink heart toe-caps (flat shoes were another NY trend echoed in London, where Clement Ribeiro also blazed the look) and flamingo-printed block heels. The models also wore oversized head bows, which we’re already head over heels for in Bangkok.
But it’s Burberry who really got fashion journos salivating. Continuing the girly artsy look, Burberry pined their look around metallic leather (also seen at Carolina Herrera in NY), shiny satins, foil materials and sequins in a frenzy of colors. We can’t help but think the prospect of a spring/ summer of metallic trenches and satin corsets is infinitely more exciting than yet another season of flippy florals.
