With the propensity for corsetry and sheer fabrics on the catwalks this week, it was no surprise that Dolce & Gabbana, the pioneers of this style for more than 20 years, reclaimed the look as their own to provide the highlight of Milan fashion week.
Appearing on catwalks everywhere from Gucci to Versace, the new mood of exposure with sheer fabrics, underwear as outerwear and cut-outs has been the main trend to emerge for next summer.
Reverting to the brand's core DNA, after an Elsa Schiaparelli referenced collection last season that used billowing leg-of-mutton sleeves and surrealist hats made from gloves, The Dolce & Gabbana show yesterday saw the designers playing up their strong points featuring signature corsets, pencil skirts and elaborate lace in black and white with flashes of floral silk.Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana have created a brand with an annual turnover of £1.1m, which encompasses women and menswear, fragrance, lingerie and makeup. Their celebrity fans include Madonna, Frieda Pinto, Beyonce, Victoria Beckham and Scarlett Johansson, who is the face of the cosmetics line.
The theme of the show was a "tribute to the Sicilian way of life" and this collection saw models alternately dressed as modern matadors complete with shoelace ties, short hair, black jodhpurs, white shirts, cropped jackets and loafers or sexy Sicilian widows living the Dolce Vita with tumbling bed hair pinned up with crystal barrettes, and squeezed into black lace corsets and bras. These were clothes that celebrated the hourglass figure, even if none of the models necessarily had them.
Taking inspiration from the boudoir, the pair turned up the heat with crochet designs that exposed traditional bodices and corsets beneath. Bra straps peeked out from the top of dresses and lace crept from hemlines of super short minis. Camisoles, dresses, silk slips, skirts and shoes were all transparent while pinstripe masculine suits provided the perfect foil. Cardigans were knotted under the bust to emphasise nipped in waists. Knee length and long sleeved lace dresses were worn sheer over black body stockings as though the model was caught halfway through getting dressed. Clashing satin floral prints were teamed together with blouses tucked into shorts, bodycon tops were cutaway at the front to reveal bras and a red leopard print frilled flamenco dress was slashed to the thigh at the front and tied with a man's silk scarf around the waist.
With a set comprising of stacked up chairs like a bistro at closing time and cameras recording everything from backstage to front of house with a CCTV like element, the idea of transparency was in everything.The finale was a march of the bodices as dresses were whipped away to reveal 1950s style shape wear underneath.
This confident and deftly accomplished mix of masculine tailoring with feminine corsetry and shape ensured that overall the show achieved a modern reinterpretation of the Dolce & Gabbana woman while remaining rooted in the timeless elegance of earlier decades.Photograph: Matteo Bazzi/EPA