London in Brazil. Marques Almeida Resort’16

June 14, 2015 | Design & Culture by Ed

After winning the LVMH Prize, Marques Almeida quickly updated their brand schedule, by introducing a new season to it – Resort. And for their first Resort, Marta Marques and Paulo Almeida went to Brazil with their muse, Sofia, to photograph and present it. The effects? A collection of wearable clothes, which have a very specific MA signature. Special denim tops with ruffles; grungy silhouettes; bold colours. And lovely dresses which were styled in unusually elegant way. Loose-weave light knits were slashed and knotted just like their tattered T-shirts, which came reinvented here as beachwear. Digital jungle-print silks and florals were a clash of femininity and the typical rawness Marques Almeida has in its codes. It is worth to mention, that going to Brazil was worth it – the clothes looked really laid-back and the lookbook will definitely catch your eye.

Arty Uniform. JW Anderson Resort’16

June 11, 2015June 11, 2015 | Design & Culture by Ed

Although J.W. Anderson is recognised as an avant-garde designer, this time the spotlight was stolen by the ruffled shoes. In polished gold, silver and black, the feminised cowboy boots looked peculiar, but from the other side desirable. If talking of the clothes – eclecticism rules. Flower prints, denim, leather, flashy colours and arty embroideries created a pretty chaotic cocktail. Also, a great surprise was seeing ultra-naive polka dots on the dresses – these looked much better at Anderson’s rather than at Dolce & Gabbana. Full of contradictions, the collection had a typically unsettling thing about it – maybe because it was so eccentric in its wearability? Or maybe because it wasn’t planned to be wearable? Jonathan Anderson will never stop making me confused about his fashion.

Cuban Heat. Proenza Schouler Resort’16

June 10, 2015 | Design & Culture by Ed

Boys from Proenza Schouler heated up their dress-code after their trip to Cuba in March. There, they became inspired with vibrant movement of the streets and feminine silhouette of traditional dresses. The dresses, which were the main components of the Resort 2016 collection, were made in a great, over-sized fit. They definitely can be worn for a hot flamenco. A sleeveless red tweed dress with a handkerchief hem and a gentle ruffle down the front (another nod to Cuba) was one of the best pieces, as elegant as it was effortless. The exposed shoulders gave a subtle sex-appeal, too. That was a good, good collection.

The Big Ruffle. Rosie Assoulin Resort’16

June 10, 2015 | Design & Culture by Ed

Ruffles! Everywhere! On trousers, on shirts, on dresses – a ruffle mania. Rosie Assoulin presented a playful collection, which fused her all-time signatures with new ideas. The statement culottes had those huge daisy shaped cuts while her classy dresses smartly flipped into a fancy party or a friend’s brunch at the same time. Also, the Woodstock-like dyed over-sized trousers had a moment. But again, the ruffles were really the stars of this collection – the Curcuma coloured top with ruffled sleeves was everything. Just like the pink top which surrealistically reminded an ethereal waterfall made of ruffles. Although all of that might sound very “couture-ish”, mostly all of the clothes designed by Rosie are wearable and, definitely, ready-to-wear. Even though they might be really arty (but then, why they shouldn’t have a creative soul?).

Tropical Escape. No21 Resort’16

June 9, 2015 | Design & Culture by Ed

Alessandro Dell’Acqua is the rising star of Milan and there no wonder why – his collections for No21 are always fresh and cool, but in Itlalian way. For Resort 2016, Alessandro fused many themes at a time – the marine chic which involved stripes; ethnic prints; oriental textiles (look at the canvas shoes!). All of that brought on the idea of perfect “tropical escape” wardrobe. The midi skirt with a sexy cut looked truly gorgeous with that over-sized chunky sweater while the warm colour of curcuma gave a laid-back mood. In overall, Dell’Acqua is known for his talent of mixing feminine silhouttes with masculine forms – the sailor jacket is the must-have of the collection, combined with one of these crispe checked skirts. This collection is an essential highlight of Alessandro’s fashion career becuase it smartly shows No21’s signatures in a very refreshing order.