l’m a sucker for new beginnings! So I get really excited when a new designer arrives at an established fashion house… and after seeing the first few looks, I’m usually very clear about how I feel. Love Jeremy Scott at Moschino, Raf Simons at Christian Dior, Nicolas Ghesquière at Louis Vuitton and John Galliano at Maison Margiela… but I wasn’t sure about Hedi Slimane at Saint Laurent and I sort of feel the same way about Alessandro Michele‘s first collection for Gucci.
One thing’s for sure, we are miles from Frida Giannini’s sophisticated and ultra glam woman! So we can think that Kering (that owns both Saint Laurent and Gucci) wants to apply here what they’ve done at Saint Laurent… leaving the past behind and bringing a new younger and cooler girl to the forefront. While that girl is all about rock & roll and grunge at Saint Laurent, we can say that the hipness factor at Gucci is brought by the vintage feel that dominates the whole collection.
And that’s something I actually liked and think Alessandro Michele did well… except for when the vintage feel turned into the « I-could’ve-done-way-better-at-the-thrift-shop » feel. To illustrate my thoughts, here’s what I loved and hated from the Fall-Winter 2015-16 collection.
WHAT I LOVED
The vintage feel dresses (and flower prints)
These dresses were definitely amongst the prettiest looks of the collection
The geometric 70’s inspired prints
I just loved all the geometric prints… SO cool!
The coats
These coats are going to make a killing when they arrive in stores!
The pleated midi skirts
I love the modern feel that the material gives to the midi skirt
The bird embroideries (+ other appliqués)
These bird embroideries left me wanting for more, as it was one of my favourite ideas in the collection. The blue sweater is just beautiful!
The suiting
Even though I love the retro silhouettes and prints + the pussybow blouses, I’m still trying to wrap my head around the odd-placed creases on the jackets and pants… Maybe I’ll find it cool when I look at it again tonight.
WHAT I HATED
The transparency
I have nothing against a bit of transparency, that’s why many of the looks I loved featured sheer tops. But here, the transparency is not very flattering
The thrift shop feeling
As I mentioned earlier, some outfits looked like the result of an unsuccessful thrift shopping spree
The shoes!!!
Can I say how much I hated all the hairy shoes… and take this opportunity to ask where we are going with the ugly shoe trend? They’re EVERYWHERE and it has to stop!
So, what do you think of Alessandro Michele’s debut at Gucci? Would you say that the Italian fashion house is heading in the right direction (except for the shoes)?
Lolitta xx
