"Liberty and freedom!" declared Alberta Ferretti backstage at her pretty spring collection. No, she hadn't been taking notes from a presidential candidate's speechwriter; the mantra reflected her belief that "fashion is a form of freedom … [and] the new lightness reflects a liberation of the mind."
In runway terms, this translated into a Sarah Jessica Parker-esque layering of eclectic elements—a striped matelot sweater with a bell skirt, a tight rib-silk Victorian or rajah jacket with Capri pants—in off-key but surprisingly charming color combinations (pansy purple and teal; mint with scarlet and Parma violet). Ferretti's feel for the season's breezy new proportions led her to layer her ravishing signature chiffon dresses (often laser-cut to evoke the elaborately slashed doublets of Elizabethan courtiers) over voluminous puffball skirts in stiff faille, so that her hemlines billowed like up-ended mushroom clouds.
Keira Knightley might have been contending with SJP as Ferretti's muse of the season, for there was a Pirates of the Caribbean spirit to the décolleté milkmaid dresses and smocked A-line bodices, and to the deliberately handcrafted effects. Patchworks of different-colored chiffon were sewn together to create elaborate evening gowns; other dresses featured panels seemingly held in place with a cross-lacing of plaited chiffon ties—bearing the saucy promise of instant disintegration in a light breeze on the high seas. | |
Full list of designers:
A.F. Vandevorst, Akris, Alberta Ferretti, Alessandro Dell'Acqua, Alexander McQueen, Alistair Carr, Anna Molinari, As Four, Ashish Gupta, Balenciaga, BCBG Max Azria, Behnaz Sarafpour, Bill Blass, Bottega Veneta, Boudicca, Buddhist Punk, Burberry Prorsum, Calvin Klein, Carolina Herrera, Celine, Chado Ralph Rucci, Chanel, Charles Anastase, Chloé, Christian Dior, Christian Lacroix, Clements Ribeiro, Comme des Garçons, Costume National, D & G, Daryl Kerrigan, Derek Lam, Diane von Furstenberg, DKNY, Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana, Donatella Versace, Donna Karan, Doo.Ri, Dries Van Noten, Dsquared, Eley Kishimoto, Eleykishimoto Ellesse, Emanuel Ungaro, Emma Cook, Emporio Armani, Etro, Fashion Fringe, Fendi, GARDEM, Giorgio Armani, Gucci, Helmut Lang, Hussein Chalayan, Imitation of Christ, J. Mendel, Jean Paul Gaultier, Jeffrey Chow, Jil Sander, Jill Stuart, John Galliano, Junya Watanabe, Kenneth Cole, Lagerfeld Gallery, Lanvin, Miguel Adrover, Missoni, Miu Miu, Monique Lhuillier, Moschino, Narciso Rodriguez, Nina Ricci, Oscar de la Renta, Perry Ellis Women, Peter Jensen, Peter Som, Phi, Pollini, Prada, Preen, Proenza Schouler, Ralph Lauren, Richard Chai, Rick Owens, Roberto Cavalli, Roberto Menichetti, Rochas, Sebastian Pons, Sonia Rykiel, Sophia Kokosalaki, Stella McCartney, Thakoon, Tommy Hilfiger, Tuleh, Undercover, United Bamboo, Véronique Branquinho, Valentino, Vera Wang, Viktor & Rolf, VPL, Wolfgang Joop, Yohji Yamamoto, YSL Rive Gauche,
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