Inspiration

Versace’s latest collection emerges as a poetic exploration of contrasts. It represents a gradual departure from the brand’s usual vibrancy, seeking to harmonize the raw edge of punk with the refined essence of English country aesthetics. This season poses a reflective question: does the collection succeed in harmonizing these contrasting themes, or does it find itself tangled in its own web of innovation?

Versace’s current offerings signal a nuanced shift, presenting an understated yet confident interpretation of the brand’s ethos. The collection reimagines the bold contours of refined rocker punk within the sartorial language of sophistication, creating a dialogue between the two worlds. The signature sharp silhouettes of Versace are softened by the pastoral touch, resulting in a collection that is both familiar and unexpected.

Materials

The ensemble of textures—velvets, leathers, and satins—speaks to a tactile journey, with each piece crafted to engage and intrigue.

Colors

There is a quiet strength in the neutral color scheme, occasionally interrupted by vibrant hues that hint at the brand’s more daring inclinations. 

While there is an elegance in restraint, certain looks suggest a hesitance to fully embrace the audacious flair for which Versace is renowned.

THE BUZZWORDS

Punk Glamour & Tailored Modernity

In the show notes, the creative director mentioned, "This is how I dream, no rush." This feeling, while it should be normal, is actually quite rare in the fashion world where time is always short. The constant need for the next big thing means there's hardly any time to think deeply or take a breather.

The changes in the design style from last season to now show that there's no need to rush all the time. It's clear that De Sarno, the designer, has a lot more to show in the future. Some of the shapes and styles from his first collection have been updated with different colors, fabrics, or finishes.

For example, the heavy fringe on a neon green coat has been changed to something more lively on a peach sequin gown. It's also been adapted for everyday wear, like in a new version of a twinset—a short knitted dress paired with a cozy cardigan. These pieces might not be worn often, but they show the brand's commitment to pushing fashion boundaries.

Key Items

Season one introduced a mix-and-match approach to wearing Gucci, featuring jewel-trimmed tanks paired with denim jeans. Today, there's a clear distinction between daytime and evening wear, with a focus on outerwear during the day. The creative director, challenging conventions, inverted the typical use of embellishments, opting to adorn coats, cardigans, and tailoring rather than evening gowns. Nocturnal looks showcased selective sheerness and creative seam and panel placements, enhanced by jewel-colored velvet, drawing inspiration from 1920s and 30s silhouettes.

Knitwear has emerged as a surprise favorite in recent seasons, offering comfort and a traditional aesthetic. Chunky, handmade-like constructions with intricate details like fringed embellishments have become coveted investment pieces.

Key Colors

The Gucci fall 2024 collection brings an optimistic burst of color, a departure from the subdued tones of earlier seasons. In addition to the signature Ancora red, candy pastels such as pistachio, butter yellow, and cloud blue are paired with vibrant autumnal hues like leaf green and bubblegum pink.

Dolce & Gabbana unveils its Fall 2024 collection, accentuating texture and color—or the absence thereof. Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana distill their iconic style with a predominantly noir palette, emphasizing fabric intricacies and sculptural forms. The collection gracefully upholds the brand's allure, intertwining refined elegance with nostalgic undertones.

While the brand's trademark corsetry and fishnet motifs persist, they provoke contemplation on the underlying themes of sensuality and femininity.

The interplay of volume and fabric occasionally veers towards the theatrical, blurring the boundaries between haute couture and costume design.

Color - This season, a monochromatic narrative unfolds, with textures flourishing against a backdrop of deep ebony and the black dominates the palette.

Design Details-

Vintage-inspired silhouettes infuse the collection with timeless allure, though at times, they overshadow its contemporary reimagining. Some pieces risk feeling more like homages to bygone eras rather than avant-garde reinterpretations.

Fabric- Each fabric, from delicate lace to ethereal feathers, narrates its own tale, enveloping the senses in opulence and subtlety.

Inspiration

Davis discovered the works of German Dada collage artist Hannah Höch during his research. Her technique of photomontage subtly influenced today’s collection, evident in layered belts and untethered fabric strips.

Walking into creative director Maximilian Davis’ fall collection set, there was a noticeable shift in atmosphere. With dim lighting inspired by Man Ray's photography, the space exuded more intimacy, featuring natural wood accents on the runway and tiered seating.

The collection drew inspiration from military aesthetics, with standout pieces like a wool peacoat in monochromatic khaki, adorned with an ultra-wide multi-stitched belt. Khaki dominated the ensemble, from coat to hosiery, complemented by khaki patent pumps with distinctive angled heels, setting the brand apart as a purveyor of 'It' accessories.

A distinct design language emerged, focusing on color storytelling and geometric silhouettes—squares, ovoids, rectangles—often sliced through, separated, and layered with textures.

Materials

Feather-weight chiffons were prominently featured, offering a common thread throughout collections. They adorned embellished slips and waisted midis, breaking conventional shape rules with extra-wide multi-stitched bands at the waist and cuff, left loose at the ends—a hallmark of the brand's unconventional approach.

Experimentation with materials harked back to Salvatore Ferragamo's innovative spirit, like repurposing cork for wedge shoes during the scarcity of leather before World War II—a testament to necessity driving invention.

Colors

Rich purple, brown, navy, monochromatic khaki dominated the season.

Ferragamo's heritage shone through satin dresses with a matte appearance, crafted from lacquered organdie, maintaining their ethereal quality as they draped around the models. Texture played a crucial role in creating unexpected surface effects, particularly in feathered evening dresses.

Key Style Items

Modern reinterpretations of 1920s dropped waist cuts in deep shades of mustard and plum, adorned with feather accents reminiscent of burlesque dancers, offered a fresh perspective without veering into cliché. Heavyweight outerwear with utilitarian vibes juxtaposed transparent dresses embellished with embroidery, reflecting the necessity of discretion in the era of speakeasies. This darker, more sensual mood marked an accomplished evolution in the brand's aesthetic for fall.

Inspiration

Fall 2024 sees MSGM offers its own take on the Truman Capote revival. While the ongoing season of Feud – which centers on the iconic American writer’s falling out with his coterie of muses, or “swans,” in stylish 60s New York – has been one of the latest entries in the trend of movies and TV manufacturing fashion trends, creative director Massimo Giorgetti goes further back to draw his collection’s subtitle from Capote’s first novel. 1948’s Other Voices, Other Rooms is a far cry from the refined yet sinister socialites of Feud, instead leaning into the Southern Gothic tradition and offering an exploration of social isolation, queerness, and the spectral reality of societally enforced gender roles.

Giorgetti’s direction for the collection itself, however, falls back into the glamor of the Swans, updating swanky 60s cocktail attire for the contemporary woman of style. While it’s a bummer that the title is misleading and instead of this potential new direction we get the same gorgeous but shallow glamor of sinuous socialites, the designer does do a great job of incorporating this iconic (and apparently inescapable) aesthetic into his own oeuvre.

Key Items-

Pencil skirts, polka dot-printed silks, and fur trims immediately recall the graphic elegance of the Swans, but it is lent a bit of toughness by bombers, boots, and sharp tailoring.

The collection felt consistently strong, but this slick, zipped look recognizably played to its historic inspiration while feeling just totally cool on its own terms.

Key Colors

A particularly effective use of color is present as the collection unfolds in chapters that pair one solid color – yellow, green, deep red, and finally soft pink – with sober and sophisticated neutrals.

Prints

Prints and embroidery make literal reference to swans, while other detailing echoes the crystal chandeliers or delicate glassware of an uptown soirée.