Prada, Emporio Armani, Max Mara promote modesty in Milan

MILAN (AP) — Milanese designers took a more modest turn on day two of Milan Fashion Week as they mostly lined up womenswear for the upcoming fall and winter.

If the first day is skin revealing, the second day brings up options allowing women to dial in or dial in the amount of revealing.

Some highlights from Thursday’s shows on the second day of Milan Fashion Week that mostly featured previews of womenswear for the upcoming fall and winter seasons:

Prada plays with couture every day

Brides and nurses get what they deserve in the latest Prada collection from creative directors Miuccia Prada and Raf Simons.

The unifying theme was concern for something the designers suggest is in short supply in a world where wars continue.

Prada said the couple wanted to give importance to a modest, purposeful look, not just “extreme glamour.” She added, “The beauty is in everyday things.”

A body hugging white dress, elevated with couture details, is a mundane thing usually picked up at a workman’s shop. While she suggests a uniform with a solid collar, buttons down, and waist pockets, details like the swing train are more functional than functional.

“Why don’t we give importance to the clothes people wear in real life,” Simmons said, and not just neglect the uniforms of workwear stores.

On the contrary, the designers intend a series of white skirts, from miniskirts to skirts with three-dimensional floral details, as wedding wear, turning the one-day piece into an everyday affair. To emphasize their new usefulness, white skirts were paired with powerful pullovers and jackets.

The collection draws heavily on themes launched at last month’s menswear preview. There is an emphasis on architecture in the outerwear, but with a more feminine touch. Short gowns with military detailing introduced a new silhouette, as did trench coats with unexpected volumes on the back.

Perhaps the most adaptable runway outfit was the bulletproof pants worn with ribbed and ribbed wear, some of which have flat wing-like accents. They are shown in bringing color combinations such as pink and green. Long dresses are back in silky prints with tiny trains, perfect for an evening out.

Front row guests included Dua Lipa, Sienna Miller, May Rae Thurman Hawk, and Jun So Mi. Fans of Chinese singer Kun swarmed outside.

Emporio Armani Circus

The models sprinting around the Emporio Armani runway smiled, not your typical runway look. But then don’t let them have a fun, everyday group to do it.

Small bowling hats seem to set the vaudevillian mood of the ensemble, which is emphasized by asymmetrical button-down jackets, organza skirts in multicolored layers, and oversized sequined disco cocktail dresses that draw light and attention. Her sense of humor showed through in the sheer blouses with bright round collars, the mini bags hanging from the straps and the striped necklines that accentuated the velvet suits.

“There’s a little bit of everything but in service of one thing: appreciation in a slightly eccentric fashion show,” Armani said after the show.

The 88-year-old designer admitted he had fun, adding with a laugh, “But I’m exhausted.”

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Bluemarine Warrior

Bluemarine’s creative director, Nicola Brugnano, showed his collection against the backdrop of the burnt letter B, found among the stone ruins.

The Bluemarine woman for next season was clearly a warrior in metallic-look liquid metallic dresses as well as tunic ensembles and long tunics. Long metallic chainmail dresses were worn over studded leather trousers.

Shearling coats and accents completed the look, sporting boldness.

Not to offend Moschino

Jeremy Scott’s latest Moschino collection was a little less literal than usual, but that doesn’t mean it was subtle.

Scott shifted from surrealism to punk, declaring his sinister intentions with the exaggerated spiked wigs worn by all the models. The opening look played with Salvador Dali’s surrealism, with houndstooth patterns that seemed to melt, and wavy stripes on jackets and skirts giving the same surreal effect.

The looks veer into pure punk with studded, mesh-trimmed jackets and skirts, then accessorize with bejeweled brooches for an aristo-punk look, which was capped off by a tulle princess dress worn with bejeweled opera gloves. There was a Mardi Gras moment with her bejeweled bra and beaded dress. Stiletto heels appeared.

“It’s rebellious tinged with surrealism, and filled with a bunch of mismatched royalty,” the designer said in notes.

Max Mara Announces “Mass Hacking”

Ian Griffiths, creative director for Max Mara, is nothing if not cheeky about the Italian brand’s affinity for monochromatic hues, especially in neutral cameos. This season, he’s filling the runway with it and flipping it, with a look in ultra-checkered brocade and jacquard.

The collection is broadly inspired by 18th-century court fashion, seen in fluffy gown-coats with pretty gusset details, short flared skirts, and pretty velvet ribbons tied in the hair.

Griffiths added modern touches such as thick belts that define the silhouette to avoid creating a “BBC costume drama,” he said. The jacquard and brocade in the camel-coloured Max Mara universe “gives you a kind of smug feel,” said the designer.

Griffiths said he puts the dignity of the Max Mara woman at the center of his collections, and has in mind the global market with varying standards of modesty.

“My interpretation of dignity is what I showed today: clothes that show the wearer at her best, to show her beauty but in a way that doesn’t degrade her in any way,” said Griffiths. “I feel pain for women who choose to, or for one reason or another find themselves having to wear something they might have fallen in love with on the runway and then spend the whole day or night constantly thinking, ‘Am I small enough or skinny enough?'”

Southwest of Inspo at Roberto Cavalli

Roberto Cavalli’s latest Fausto Puglisi collection can fill the Coachella music festival, with elements inspired by the West and the spirit of rock and roll.

The flirty looks included patchwork leather skirts, ultra-skinny lace bodysuits, and elephant-leg jeans worn with silk-print T-shirts that slip easily off the body. Flowing dresses had an open back and bodice, but could be covered with patchwork leather jackets with star motifs as the sun set. Turquoise jewelry accentuates the look.

The collection fits well with the Milan Fashion Week runway which invites people to show off their leather, even in fall and winter.

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