Highlights From The Spring/Summer 2018 Runways

A rocky political and economic landscape made 2017 a challenging year, but fashion designers kept their heads

Calvin Klein

Raf Simons went all-American during his first season with the brand, with top-to-toe denim looks, cowboy shirts, and boots. For his second season, Simons has focused on Hollywood. Denim looks were accented with Andy Warhol portraits of Dennis Hopper, while leather coats and nylon dresses were heavily painted with patterns resembling blood splatter. A nod to film renditions of Stephen King’s Carrie or Bret Easton Ellis’s American Psycho?

Marc Jacobs

Marc Jacobs may have made a name for himself for his grungy ’90s aesthetic, but it was a wonderfully retro collection of tinsel scarves, flower-power prints, and bold, bright hues that had us smiling at New York Fashion Week. It felt like he was encouraging the audience to dream big; everything from the daisy prints to the turbans was larger than life. In troubled times, it’s always good to keep your head up—which will also help keep your Stephen Jones-designed silk turban on your head.

Michael Kors Collection

Despite creating six collections a year and organising numerous largescale events around the world, Michael Kors makes everything look easy. And this carefree, rise-above-it-all sense of ease permeated his collection, with beach-ready separates, pyjama-style ensembles, kimonos, and swimwear all tie-dyed, palm-printed or in earthy shades. It’s clear Michael Kors is favouring relaxed Malibu over the busy streets of Manhattan.

Ports 1961

Ports 1961 targeted the travelling businesswoman, which was especially apparent in Natasa Cagalj’s relaxed trench coats and roomy pleated pants, perfect for planes, trains, and automobiles. The collection, mainly in primary colours, was minimalist in cutting, with plenty of tailored, offi ce-friendly separates, while checks inspired by men’s handkerchiefs added a touch of sophisticated ease for which the Canadian label is known.

Bottega Veneta

Tomas Maier’s collection kept to a soft pastel palette befi tting spring, with details in exotic skins, from snake to lizard, added to smooth leather. Glossy sequins, studs, and fringes also added intricate details on ’60s-style frocks.

Dolce & Gabbana

Domenico and Stefano are known to pour their hearts into their creations, and this season was no different. Their collection, named Queen of Hearts, was an ode to many different symbols of love. It included boldly embellished hearts, loud graphic prints of red roses and the word amour, and the queen of hearts portrayed in different ways on military jackets and dresses, and matched with sheer corsets.

Etro

Seeing an Etro show is often like travelling in a time machine. On this occasion we were transported to ancient Persia as models glided down the runway in fl owy silk kaftans and printed robes. There was no shortage of the brand’s kaleidoscopic paisley prints on chiffon dresses and bejewelled waistcoats, but sportswear was also a highlight, with racerback bras and matching leggings under lustrous cover-ups.

Fendi

A holiday in the tropics with a splash of Italian futurism was the feel we got at Fendi. Models, including campaign girl Kendall Jenner, sported sleek, side-parted hairstyles brushed with forest green and matched with a mink bomber jacket in tropical colours, laser-cut banana leaves, graphic stripes, and the house’s iconic double F logo. Floral-printed organza Cuban shirts with candy-striped skirts were worn with heels and socks, and accessorised with wooden-handled raffia totes and leather-fringed bags. Even the mini drawstring bucket bags with monkey bag charms alluded to holidays in warmer climes.

Giorgio Armani

The glitz and glamour of Hollywood came alive in the house’s spring/ summer collection. Having provided the wardrobe for more than 200 Hollywood films, the brand gave classic Armani tailoring a thoroughly modern update with Mandarin-collar button-up jackets spruced up with vivid prints, floral embroidery, and statement jewels as accents. Other notable designs included a taffeta parka in pretty pastels

Gucci

Alessandro Michele has done for Gucci what every designer strives to do—created a strong brand identity to a point where the brand name becomes an adjective. “That’s so Gucci” has become synonymous with colourful, bold, loud yet trendy, and everyone—from the creatives the brand partners with to the celebrities it dresses—fit perfectly with the brand’s image. The collection had a heavy dose of the ’70s and ’80s: Disney characters, Sega, strong shoulders, and that iconic Farrah Fawcett hairdo on the models. It also had a hint of glam rock, with sparkly, eyecatching accents, courtesy of Michele’s visit to Elton John’s personal archives of his stage pieces from the ’70s.

Prada

Miuccia Prada dived into the art of graphic novels in search of her heroine this season. She enlisted female illustrators such as Brigid Elva, Joëlle Jones, Stellar Leuna, and Fiona Staples to create the comic strips that decorated military coats, matching bags, and studded leather jackets. And let’s not forget the shoes. It was all about Velcro-fastened trainers with knee-high socks.

Salvatore Ferragamo

For creative director Fulvio Rigoni’s final collection, the show was staged al fresco rather than in its usual location in the Milanese stock exchange building. The collection, full of pastels and python skin, had plenty of sheer jackets and perforated tunics to welcome the warm weather, but it was the laser-cut column heels in the house’s flower motif that stole the show, boding well for the future as the brand’s footwear designer, Paul Andrew, takes over from Rigoni.

Tod's

The Tod’s show delivered an array of loose-fitting shirtdresses, neutral midi skirts and practical parkas that felt like a collection made to be worn on a luxury safari. And for a brand that made its name in leather goods, the accessories certainly didn’t disappoint, with chunky snakeskin sandals, loafers with exaggerated fringes, and itty-bitty python leather bags worn cross-body or as wristlets.

Versace

The highlight of the Milan shows was Versace’s finale, with ’90s supermodels Carla Bruni, Cindy Crawford, Claudia Schiffer, Naomi Campbell, and Helena Christensen taking to the runway to mark the 20th anniversary of Gianni Versace’s death in pieces from a collection that paid tribute to his work. There were plenty of the iconic bullion print reinterpreted onto miniskirts and leggings and paired with denim jackets.

Alexander McQueen

An excursion to a Sussex garden provided the inspiration for Sarah Burton’s spring collection, which was presented on a Paris set designed to look like an English garden, with models gliding down the catwalk with hair slick as if they’d just been in one of the showers of a rainy British spring. There were spliced-and-diced trench coats mimicking a gardener’s working uniform and ruffled chiffon dresses sprinkled with flowers, all cut up and reworked to imitate the romance of a well-loved gown, worn to tatters and revived again the McQueen way.

Balenciaga

Demna Gvasalia proved last season that he could reinterpret the house’s iconic silhouettes from the ’50s and ’60s after studying Cristóbal Balenciaga’s archived designs. But this season, he set out boldly with a collection that is truly original. Notable footwear were platform crocs in canary yellow and legging boots with a dizzyingly glittery and collaged print of the €20 bill. The ready-to-wear pieces were equally unexpected, with double-sleeved trench coats, leather trousers with desktop wallpaper scenery prints, and high-gloss button-down short sleeves with tweed skirts and prim and proper heels to match.

Céline

The announcement in December of Phoebe Philo’s departure sent shockwaves through the industry. Those disappointed with her decision to leave would have been even more dismayed when they sighted this collection, considered by many to be her best, which was beautifully thought out, a bittersweet fi nale for her last show with the house. The Céline silhouette started at the shoulder, with oversized shirts, vests, and looped double-layer trench coats. Handbags were always sizeable, either slung over the shoulders or kept hidden within the folds of a coat. A favourite piece was a leather coat with Western embroidery around the shoulder and back, which took more than 100 hours to construct.

Chanel

In an industry constantly searching for the next trend before the current ones have time to set in, Chanel offered something genuinely fl uid: a wardrobe of classic tweed ensembles that will last season after season. Sure, there were PVC boater hats and cappedtoe go-go boots that will be snapped to death in the coming fashion weeks, but underneath the plastic was a brilli

Chloé

There’s a new Chloé girl in town and she’s a little tougher than before. Natacha Ramsay-Levi’s fi rst collection for the house focused on layering, with exquisite leather coats and cropped jackets and vests worn over Victorian dresses and billowing blouses, all embroidered and pierced. Soft tailoring also came in fl oral-embroidered velvet suits with pythonprint tops zipped low to expose the décolletage. Also notable were the toughened-up accessories, including enlarged chain straps on bags and shoes. For footwear, it was all about a sturdy boot: Western tips, chunky heels, and laced up.

Christian Dior

Maria Grazia Chiuri kicked off her show with a statement tee bearing the line “Why have there been no great women artists?,” the title of a famous feminist essay by Linda Nochlin in 1971, and followed it up with a collection influenced by the colourful art of the late female sculptor Niki de Saint Phalle. The French-American’s Tarot-inspired mystical female figures adorned the set, and references could be seen scattered throughout the collection. Chiuri’s youthful spin was evident in shorts, low-heeled boots and denim, and plenty of tulle, of course.

Dries Van Noten

The designer had models gliding down the runway under the ornate ceiling of Hôtel de Ville in barely-there veils of clustered crystals, draped scarf-print dresses, boldly embroidered bombers and boots, and what felt like every pattern under the sun. It was a collection that exuded the confidence, selfassurance and devil-may-care attitude behind the house’s unique sexiness.

Givenchy

All eyes were on Clare Waight Keller’s debut collection for the French house. Titled “Transformation Seduction,” it was far removed from the punk rock-inspired aesthetic of her predecessor, Riccardo Tisci. The designer took cues from founder Hubert de Givenchy’s original sketches and his love for graphic prints, which she honoured through bold animal prints and pops of mint and red. Oh, and let’s not forget those killer V-point knee-high cowboy boots.

Hermès

Nadège Vanhee-Cybulski, ever a master at effortless silhouettes, introduced a chequered motif into the spring collection on ponchos and tailored long coats over demure tunics and skirt-pants. All, of course, still in the moss green and muted tan palette befi tting a fashion house with equestrian roots, and executed with the superb craftsmanship for which the brand is renowned.

Loewe

Jonathan Anderson’s passion for craftsmanship was vividly on show in the looks and accessories of his collection for the Spanish house. A seemingly simple maxi-dress was quilted together at the hems to look like a blanket, a one-shouldered dress came with endless tassel trimmings, and a jacket-and-trousers ensemble was dip-dyed in dreamy pastels. Anderson’s muse, the travel nomad, was also equipped with the Gate, the brand’s new take on the classic saddle carrier, slung over the shoulder ready for her next adventure.

Louis Vuitton

Louis Vuitton knows how to put on a show, from an outstanding venue—the basement of the Louvre surrounded by remnants of its medieval fortifications—to a star-studded front row, which this season included Jennifer Connelly, Cate Blanchett, and Catherine Deneuve. Nicolas Ghesquière was inspired for this collection by an exhibition of French aristocratic garments from the 18th century that he saw at the Met in New York. The result is a mash-up of decorative ceremonial looks rich with brocade and embroidery matched with futuristic lace-up trainers with bouncy soles, rucksacks with sporty drawstrings, and even an oversized T-shirt depicting everyone’s favourite Netflix show of late, Stranger Things.

Sacai

There’s no mix master quite like Sacai’s Chitose Abe. Her ability to turn two, three, or more garments into a single fluid piece that’s incredibly complex yet easy to wear has garnered her a loyal fan base. For spring, Abe created a functional yet cutting-edge wardrobe of dresses, skirts, trousers, and jackets designed with utility straps, so they can be worn in various ways. She has carefully fused a mixture of materials: traditional menswear glen check fabrics, military camo, lingerie silks, delicate white lace, and poplin shirting.

Saint Laurent

As Paris and Marrakech were the cities Yves Saint Laurent loved most, they were chosen by Anthony Vaccarello as the motifs for his collection, which was shown beside a glistening Eiffel Tower just after dark. A mix of heavily embroidered, desert-friendly looks started the show, and then came couture-in-construction evening dresses, left short and sweet, that blew the audience away. Balloon-shaped bodices were larger than life but pared back with miniskirts. An unconventional bridal look in Victorian lace, but left sheer, was styled with a feathered headpiece. This was the modern-day Saint Laurent we have come to know and love.

Stella McCartney

Stella McCartney’s longtime emphasis on ethical and environmentally friendly fashion was at the fore. The show’s invitations were printed on recycled trash bags, the garments were made with eco-friendly materials, such as vegan leather, and comfort was of utmost importance. Acid-washed denim flight suits had drop waists and ruffles, and African-print dresses were left loose while belted.

Valentino

Valentino never fails to bring out the romantic ribbons and ruffles, but this time it took a utilitarian spin. Pierpaolo Piccoli injected anoraks, windbreakers, coveralls and raincoats with a dose of ’80s glamour, reinventing them in sweet colours and rich textures, and adding plenty of glitter. The result is a refreshingly wearable collection filled with slinky tank tops and roomy jumpsuits, all with a touch of disco.

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fashion runway spring/summer 2018 collection

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