Trend Dissection 12: Severed Heads, Naivety and Executive Realness

Collage by Aylea Skye/ Original Images by Unknown Sources

"You can have anything you want in life if you dress for it."

Said Edith Head, and that notion was certainly perfused throughout the varied collections at the New York, London, Milan and Paris fashion weeks. Themes weren't subtle suggestions that lightly doused the runway looks with a sense of purpose, they were as present as the models themselves. From Raf Simon's dystopian All-American Calvin Klein 205W39NYC assemblage to Alessandro Michele's outré enterprise into all things supernatural for Gucci, and Jacquemus’ excursion to the markets of Marrakesh for his 'Le Souk’ collection, this season’s runways told liberal narratives.

And within these narratives, of course, were things that loosely tied the divergent collection to one another — a string of delicate nuances that make a look on the Christian Dior runway reminiscence of one seen on Off-White's — trends.

And some may argue the predominant trend of the season was overindulgent themes themselves, perhaps the key to Autumn/Winter 18 dressing is attire that communicates a character. But, if we look at this less literally and inspect the collections a little closer, those delicate nuances become something more substantial, and to save you the time of doing so we've put a magnifying glass to the trends Autumn/Winter 18 for you.

Tweed and Checks

The homespun quality of tweed is what makes it so right for the colder seasons. Autumn/Winter 18 saw it come in a multitude of hues, patterns and densities; at The Row, Chanel, Prada and Adam Lippes it was woven with a neat check whilst, Rejina Pyo, Emilia Wickstead and Simone Rocha's heritage checks distinguished the floaty fabrics of dainty 'Little House on the Prarie'-style dresses.

Shiny Things

'Shiny, shiny, shiny boots of leather' we're prevalent last Autumn/Winter – the runways, high street and street style shots were teeming with metallic ankle boots. This season tinny fabrics percolated through to whole ensembles. A foil-like jacket enveloped a contrastingly bohemian 70's-inspired look at Dior, a similar fabric composed a dress and raincoat at Marques' Almeida, and Halpern's sweetie-wrapper hued metallics enhanced the brand's vivacious disco aesthetic. And of course one can't mention shiny garments without looking the founder of the famed chain dress, Paco Rabanne, where remodelled versions of the classic piece were showcased.

Earthy Hues

Jacquemus doesn't do anything to the book, and this season it was the warm earthy hues and atypical take on Autumn/Winter that made the French designer's Le Souk collection stand out. Though earthy hues are to expected of the season (warm ochres, forest greens and burgundy are hues that exude autumn/winter) Jacquemus' use of terracotta, burnt orange, olive green and stone, inspired by Morocco, is what isolated his collection. Meanwhile, Coach 1941, Rochas and Sies Marjan utilised the traditional hues, teaming them with tactile fabrics in monochromatic looks.

Accessories: Cowboy Boots, Mini Bags, Shoulder-Grazing Earrings

As someone once said,

"It's the little things that count".

And they definitely wasn't talking about fashion but it's a notion that definitely applies to dressing, and this Autumn/Winter 2018 saw designers consider these little things just as they much as they considered the clothes themselves. Variations of the humble cowboy boot were seen at Emporio Armani, Fendi and Isabel Marant; where they were thigh-grazing. And whilst miniature bags that would just about fit your phone and keys made a comeback at Jacquemus and debut at Giambattista Valli and Altuzzura, oversized bags that would fit supplies and a change of outfit for an overnight stay were clutch under the arms of models at Celine.

FashionAylea SkyeApril 8, 2018Comment