We braved the cold temperatures of Beijing to check out the SS20 collection by Salvatore Ferragamo which was being presented by creative director Paul Andrew. Ferragamo picked a 600-year-old Tibetan Buddhist temple turned stylish boutique hotel to showcase its men’s and women’s collections, which were mostly inspired by the vacation Andrew took with his family as a child. Andrew, who's dressed in a shirt, lightweight vest and pants, said the collection “really gives me the feeling of being in the south of Italy.”
A trip may not be on the cards in the near future but there are key takeaways from the collection that we can get on board with. Let us count them:
Viva, Viva!
One of the first things Paul Andrew did was to reinvent the iconic Vara shoe. He jests, “The original shoe is older than me, actually. So we came up with the Viva shoe, which has a more pointed, elongated shape. The bow is larger and the sculptural block heel is inspired by a favourite sculptor of mine, Richard Serra.”
A footwear pairing that has been trending lately, Andrew paired white socks with the Viva, giving a sense of primness and a kind of school-girl nostalgia.
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Period Revivals
Andrew looked back to the summer of 1980 when he and his brother were seen wearing clashing Bermuda prints and wide smiles in pictures propped on the family home’s mantelpiece. But for the SS20 collection, he had prints of the marble statue of Neptune emblazoned on shirts, overalls and dresses instead—an ode to the rehabilitation of the Neptune Fountain in Florence that is funded by Ferragamo itself.
Bubble skirts are also making a comeback, so are hand-knit crocheted dresses and tank tops. Expressed in soft napa leather, Andrew said the bubble skirt is one of the most complicated things in fashion to create, as the way it has to be stitched is very complex for it to maintain its shape.
And while baseball caps are perennially evergreen, Andrew made his version into a scarf-cap so that it wraps and ties at the back—a stylish accessory for the beach or the tennis court. Complementing it are sunglasses trimmed in leather for a more youthful and energetic vibe.
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