By Tanya Dukes
Prada
Miuccia Prada is one of the best mix masters in fashion, so her most recent collection’s tour of 1940s suits and dresses, outdoorsy countryside chic and punky techno touches was oddly coherent coming from her. Weighty Shetland wool jackets were cinched at the waist over coordinating skirts with up-to-there slits. And a series of dresses in silk jacquard and leather packed a strong, womanly punch. Prada also takes the prize for the most offbeat accessories of the season, including fringed, studded, cracked leather pumps and thigh-high leather waders (no word yet on whether those will actually be waterproof).
Dolce & Gabbana
Anyone starved for a celebrity presence at Milan’s ready-to-wear shows would find satisfaction at the Dolce & Gabbana show. Freida Pinto, Eva Mendes and Scarlett Johansson brought big screen elegance to a season devoid of A-list lovelies. The designers took their cues from another larger than life inspiration, Elsa Schiaparelli, for their surreal collection of exaggerated silhouettes with flashes of her signature hot pink. The puffed up shoulders the pair favored in their spring collection remain in a revamped, tapered form on dresses that have a spare-no-expense exuberance that had been sorely lacking elsewhere. And their classic corsets showed up in shapely lace dresses.
Giuliana Teso
It’s hard to imagine any option that’s not available in Giuliana Teso’ encyclopedic inventory of spectacular furs. In particular, the fall collection brimmed with cropped jackets with youthful details like oversized buttons and horizontal panels joined by contrasting stitching. A first from the company is its ski collection. To ensure that the luxe garments could actually perform on the slopes, Guiliana Teso teamed with a performance ski brand that provided high-tech cushioning material to protect vulnerable pressure points and diffuse the force of a fall. In case of a less-than-graceful landing, you’ll look and feel better in Giuliana Teso.
Etro
You can always count on Etro to inject a flash of the exotic that makes classic, wearable design gloriously covetable. Spicy, shades, block prints, gypsy fringes and glitzy gold python turned straightforward separates and dresses into show pieces. The collection followed the prevailing mix of cropped pants and dresses and skirts that hovered about the knees. Diaphanous silk evening dresses in scrolling lines and paisley reestablished Etro’s place as the preeminent purveyor of luxe bohemian glamour.
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