Claudia, u ok hun?
The moments that were momenting this MFW
Look, whether you loved, hated or had zero qualms towards Alessandro Michele, that guy knew how to make an impactful collection. Yes, the fashion wasn’t always... good, but there was no denying that it was Gucci: eclectic, romantic and contemporary.
Sabato De Sarno’s debut collection however has us seriously wondering if the fashion house has lost its verve. Ask yourself - would you be able to spot the new Gucci IRL without seeing the logo? Or the distinctive colour palette? Who is this new Gucci customer? What language are these clothes speaking and more importantly, is it unified?
We had thoughts.
Verity: My two cents? It’s a luxury Zara. But let’s not tell lies, we both know we’d be wearing pretty much everything.
Kholi: No lies told. I’m a liker of things, and fortunately for me, Gucci featured a lot of things I like: chunky platforms, gold jewellery and gorgeous bags. There was no unnecessary fluff, just pretty, wearable stuff.
V: Surprisingly the chartreuse ticked all my boxes, that, and the vino rosso-coloured Jackie bag and patent leather ensemble. Ufff. Hands up, who also had to Google Ancora? Guilty.
K: Honestly, I was so confused when I saw Ancora on Insta, but then I forgot about it 2 seconds later. De Sarno’s going to need to make more of an impact for his sophomore collection. Leave the cute marketing bits for a social activation or whatever.
V: Those Gucci models oozed a cool confidence not too dissimilar to when I went to the gym that same evening. I felt so en vogue in my oversized grey sweatshirt.
K: See, I do love a debut that exudes cool confidence, but it also has to be memorable. It has to stand out. Otherwise, it just becomes a good collection among many other superior collections (Jil Sander, Prada, FERRAGAMO!).
V: I also read Sabato’s manifesto before the show stating “it’s inclusive as in everyone is welcomed” but I just wasn’t getting that from the model casting. No real diverse body types, ages, nada.
K: Right, but we have to remember that inclusivity in this industry is almost always an afterthought. Also, diversity in Giorgia Meloni’s Italy? Please.
All in all there were a slew of truly divine pieces — hoodies and bomber jackets that’ll start saturating neighbourhoods where people buy stuff they actually can’t afford. The clothes were covetable, wearable, vivid (some of them) and as blingy as ever. Clearly Kering has and will always secure that bag.
We also need to talk about donatella’s VERSACE 💜. On the surface, the clothes looked simply irresistible. Those damier chequered looks were giving tasty confectionery — there was so. much. eye. candy. Also, THE Claudia Schiffer! It was pure, innocent and fun. Zero drama in the clothes and definitely no drama in some of those walks. Some Versace models were serving abandoned impala in the wild-cum-runway.
V: Kholi when you compared Claudia’s walk to the Martian Girl in Mars Attacks via Insta I died. Literally died.
K: I could not for the life of me remember Claudia’s walk being this bad. Stunning woman, iconic even. But when you think of supermodels, you think timeless beauty, charisma and cunty walks. Sadly, Claudia’s lousy tootle gave nothing of the sort.
V: Actually the neckline on those chequered dresses took me straight to the 2000’s Grammy red carpet when Xtina also wore Versace. Kudos to Donatella, we love a consistent queen.
K: Consistently queening for sure. But I fear for the brand's longevity. At some point, we’ll all be sick of feeling nostalgic and will want to look to the future. Call me a cynic, but when I imagine what we’ll be wearing in the next 20 years, Prada, Gucci, and Bottega come to mind. Versace? I don’t see her.
Speaking of wild, Matthieu Blazy and his leather trickery is really something else. Bottega delivered, quite literally, a hefty collection for spring ‘24. But it’s a bit much, no? Where are the girls, guys, and gays going with all that material? Couldn’t we have something light and ethereal, like Prada? (fab collection btw).
The accessories had the girls gagged, as per usual, but the clothes? Mmm… great bags. Really superb.
V: Was it just me or was there an overwhelming feeling of ‘office casual but for attractive employees’ during this run of MFW? Ferragamo and Bottega really said “if we make them look hot enough they’ll stop working from home.”
K: Oooh, I love this theory. There’s a quote by Maximilian Davis about how he wanted to prove Ferragamo isn’t just a brand your parents wear. So yes, hot and relevant girlies were for sure on the agenda. I also just love that Milan has an aesthetic that makes more noise than the other fashion capitals. They were like, “Quiet luxury? We don’t know her!” and thank God for that.
One minor detail that’s probably worth mentioning is celebrity. It’s no secret that celebs usually attend certain fashion shows as ambassadors or influencers for high-end brands, etc. Fine. A brand needs to be talked about if they’re to stay relevant. But, and this is a necessary but — if we have a celeb like Kylie Jenner attending Prada, a brand that is typically known for championing unconventionally cool influencers, what does this say about their strategy? And do they even have one? And if they do have one, then it’s impressively jarring.
If these brands want to remain distinguishable from one another, they need to start with the base: who are they dressing? Where are they going? If it’s the Kardashian/Jenners, then Prada’s going to need to get their beauty line up and running ASAP! Because we all know little J spends a lot of her time with ‘cosmetics’. And no, we’re not talking about the ones she sells…