The 8 Biggest Trends from Milan Fashion Week Spring 2017
Milan Fashion Week is more relevant than ever right now, with Gucci‘s Alessandro Michele setting the tone for a good chunk of the industry, stalwarts like Versace and Dolce & Gabbana drawing Instagram’s It crowd to their front rows, and young brands like Vivetta, Stella Jean, and MSGM invigorating the Italian city with fresh ideas and clothes that actually have a chance of ending up in our closets.
While some trends carried over from New York and London—the reign of the statement sleeve, all-over ruffles—others felt shiny and new, not to mention thoroughly Milanese. Below, get our rundown of the eight biggest trends to come out of the Spring 2017 shows.
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Pajama Stripes
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Silky, stripey, and fantastically comfy-looking, many of spring’s runways took inspiration from your PJ drawer. At Fendi, Karl Lagerfeld‘s sport-meets-lingerie collection gelled together perfectly in all-over striped looks paired with tube-sock booties, while at Etro, the pattern took on a more exotic, eclectic air. At Ports 1961, the vibe was unabashedly beachy, inviting you to lounge around in a cabana, take a snooze in a hammock, and check out of the stress of city living in wide-leg pants and oversized shirts, while looking thoroughly chic in the process.
Game On
In fashion, “uniform dressing” usually refers to one’s longterm commitment to a simple, unfussy look (think Vera Wang‘s leggings or Carolina Herrera‘s white button-downs). For spring, though, Milan’s resident maximalists are proposing a less ascetic take on the concept, with looks inspired by team jerseys and athletic gear. At Stella Jean, the designer used the soccer field as a jumping-off point, pointing to the fact that the sport is essentially a global unifier (well, except maybe in the States) as reason enough to weave references to it into her signature citizen-of-the-world aesthetic. At Gucci, meanwhile, Michele showed track pants and a beaded ivory baseball shirt with matching trousers—pieces that are sure to fly off the shelves and onto the back of street-style stars come March.
Blush
Millennials’ affection for all things dusty pink is well documented, but Milanese designers are counting on the color winning over customers of all ages come spring (at least we assume so, since we don’t know many 20-somethings with a grand to drop on a two-piece taffeta set, no matter how enticing it looks on Gigi Hadid). Variations on the hue were spun into silhouettes both sweet (Blumarine’s fit-and-flare dresses and midriff-baring tops) and tough (Diesel Black Gold’s cargo pants and combat boots), and always worn with self-assurance.
Ruching
Proof that athleisure’s influence extends further than our current yen for hoodies: sporty drawstrings and plastic toggles even made it in to the cocktail wear segments of shows this season, lending extra dimension to printed, pleated fabrics at Marni and body-hugging drape to Versace’s outdoorsy nylon. And while not exactly as functional as their Patagonia counterparts, MSGM’s windbreaker-style tops and tunic dresses are more than welcome to come join our closets come spring.
Exaggerated Shoulders
Whether in the form of extra-long cuffs, ballooning sleeves, or sloped, super-sized shoulders, there’s a whole lot of attention being paid to what goes on your arms these days. Jil Sander showed an array of blazers, dresses, and trench coats equipped with huge, sandwich-sized shoulder pads, and DSquared2’s leg-of-mutton sleeves were not for the faint of heart, but for the most part, Milan’s take on the trend was softer and more elegant than most—if not always conducive to jackets or shoulder bags.
Robe Life
Ah, the glamour of wearing a silk robe out in public—really, we highly recommend it. So did some of Italy’s finest this past week, sending out printed kimonos, embroidered robes, and flowing fringed caftans for a boudoir-ish take on warm-weather outerwear.
Lemon Yellow
Are you ready to look on the sunny side for spring? We sure hope so, because yellow ruled the runways in Milan top to toe, from slick visors and leather trench coats all the way down to sock booties and suspiciously Crocs-like clogs. And while virtually every shade popped up somewhere—marigold at Gucci, egg yolk at Pucci, near-neon at Ferragamo—the most popular (and wearable) were the lemony hues.
It’s Geometric
Although we could probably live our life in stripes and florals alone and be perfectly happy about it, Deco-y geometric prints provided a fresh alternative this season. Prada’s in particular were stellar on midi-dresses, hot pants, and silky, marabou-trimmed pajama sets, offering the maximalist something other than Gucci to obsess over.
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