Nostalgia for the past has always been the stuff of romance, inspiring a million and one ways to do retro and vintage that fill our closets to this day. But how much excess lace and frills can our even most saccharine selves take? For 2007, a wistful look to the future promises a whole new fashion landscape to indulge in. It’s already six years past Kubrick’s
2001 forecast, after all, and if we’re still stuck with the ghosts of retro past, heaven help us! Designers are not just doing futuristic and space age incarnations but are reinterpreting the past and even feminine romance, with the future in mind by using novel cuts, the latest technology and the most amazing new fabrics. Futurism, of course, has been done before like the futurism wave of the ’60s epitomized by Courreges, Pierre Cardin and Paco Rabanne. In the ’80s, Claude Montana and Thierry Mugler also had their versions. But today’s futurism is different. Whereas the ’60s reflected the new sense of freedom brought about by the sexual revolution (with birth control freeing the woman’s body) and the ’80s championed the power woman emancipated from stereotypes of being the weaker sex, the 21st century finds fashion absorbing a new consciousness in which a woman is free in spirit. It is this spiritual liberation that makes designers see women in a whole new light, inspiring many stellar looks for the coming year, from the space age to a reimagined romantic and pastoral past:
"I wanted to do real futurism, the idea of artificiality for the body, of robots and androids," says Balenciaga’s Nicolas Ghesquiere, who staged the most spectacular venture into space. Looking almost like video game space warriors, his creations fused robotics and the ’80s with elongated black jackets that had double-layered shoulder lines, some achieved with a protruding rouleau;
Star Trek white shirts with high collars; articulated metallic legs; and dresses with jigsaw patent appliqués. At Fendi, Karl Lagerfeld employed materials like black silicone, silver leather that was laser-cut to simulate athletic mesh and holographic paillettes for his vision of tomorrow. In black, navy, white, silver and shocking pink, short Edie Sedgwick dresses looked both space-age ’60s and sexed-up ’80s, but with a modern lightness. Christopher Bailey at Burberry wove silk with aluminum to give a lightness of spirit to his clothes, which included a summer coat that was narrow in front with barrel-shaped volume curving from a yoke in the back. Alber Elbaz did futuristic Greek draping with athletic multi-strap racer backs along with metallic skinny pants, parachute silk shifts with zipper detailing and trenches in acid yellow and pink. At Dior, John Galliano’s warriors were medieval, sporting Joan of Arc hairdos and subtly abstracted armor that was merely suggested with cuts on the elbows and hips of otherwise staid beige linen suits. Deadly weapon-sharp platforms in metal mesh and armor-layered bags in stingray, croc and snake complete the fashion crusader’s gear.
Global warming is the future so everything will be brief, brief, brief! And big, big, big! Volumes are concentrated on one area, like the sleeves at Stella McCartney where her little white dress (the summer staple counterpart of the little black dress) was just so cool with those voluminous Renaissance sleeves. Inevitably, a trapeze or baby doll dress will come your way but choose one with a surprise like the ones of Jun Takahashi at Undercover where jewel-toned dresses had a hint of danger and S&M when accessorized with dog collars or a lone leather glove. His pompom embellishments morphed into skulls while his pearls were worn around the neck in a sack of black netting. Giambattista Valli executed the trapeze with such finesse by embellishing it with roses burnt at the edges so they rustle like falling leaves; or by decorating them with paintings of Calder mobiles to go perfectly with his Peggy Guggenheim shades.
| ’90s Luxe Lingerie & Dominatrix Gear |
Warm climes will bring the more comfortable albeit risqué lingerie from the bedroom to just about anywhere else. But nowhere was it as hot as in the London club scene where young designer wunderkind Christopher Kane gets his inspiration to create some of the best articulated examples of Alaïa/Versace/Leger ’90s mania. The 25-year-old Central Saint Martin’s grad works practically from his bedroom to sew amazing clubwear with extraordinary combinations like red and pink, lime and beige, violet and green – all with dozens of pattern variations using stretch lace, chain mail, crystal mesh, brass rings and boudoir ruffles. For the more hardcore, there are dominatrix carapace corsets that Dolce & Gabbana do so well and Giles Deacon’s trapeze dresses with hardware prints.
If short and saucy is too much, you can go long and floaty. Ethereal chiffon gowns were a dream at Donna Karan with the most languid draping in white with a particular striking piece that was black on the side fading into white. Vera Wang and Marc Jacobs had shorter draped versions and Monique Lhuillier executed them masterfully for the red carpet.
From Ziegfeld Follies and Flash Dance Girls in the New York shows to Las Vegas and ’40s showgirls in Milan, women were being elevated to the stage in their dance gear for full performance mode. " The world’s gone dance-crazy!" according to Michael Kors, who was inspired by everything from a 15-year-old dancer on the street and Gene Kelly to
Swan Lake. "But we never turned it into a costume. It’s urban and seasonless." His clothes espouse the idea of sexy and comfort at the same time: super-light stretch jersey tops and shrunken or kimono-sleeved cardigans paired with leggings or skirts tied at the sides; and chiffon skirts twirled over a stretch bodysuit. For Dolce & Gabbana, a show isn’t a show without an overload of sequins to embellish butterfly wing sleeves and other references to the ’80s club scene largely influenced by the titans of tough chic: Azzedine Alaïa, Thierry Mugler and Gianni Versace. Prada, on the other hand, went further back in time to the ’40s for her showgirl wearing the shortest shorts and the highest waistline using sleek satin for a modern finish. The shorts were just as brief at Chanel but covered with black sequins to update the classic tweed jackets and boleros.
| Quick Guide To Fashion 2007 |
DRESSES: Voluminous ’60s triangular shift, trapeze, high-waist bubble, soft wraps, long and floaty
SKIRTS: Short and wide or short and rounded; flaring or with pleats; long and soft
SHORTS: Tailored, high-waisted; tight, micro length; wide cuff
PANTS: Cropped, soft and wide, skinny legs
JACKETS: Soft and flaring; soft jersey shapes; shrunken bolero and matador
BLOUSES: Full sleeves, Dickie or bib-front tucks; full sleeves; lace and ribbon ties; mini caftans; ethnic tunics
FABRICS: Duchess satin, vinyl, patent leather, plastic, gauze, chiffon, eyelet, jersey, satin charmeuse, metal mesh, athletic mesh, high-tech fabrics woven with aluminum or other metals, lacquered silk
COLORS: Metallics with emphasis on silver, white, cobalt and kingfisher blue, marigold yellow, smudgy mauve, gray, black and white, sand, coral, hot pink
BAGS: Ultra big or tiny, pouchy sacks, transparent totes, rectangular purses, minaudieres, clutches, ostrich, python, snakeskin, crocodile, embellished with jewels and grommets or charms, patchwork cut-outs
SHOES: Metallic, mirrored, clear Lucite heels and platforms; wood soles and wedges, gladiator sandals, rhinestone encrusted, jeweled flats, sandals, Mary Janes, satin pumps, color-blocked
HAIR ORNAMENTS: Jewels, roses, liberty print flowers, turbans
SUNGLASSES: Futuristic goggles, square mod, unusual shapes a la Peggy Guggenheim, small rectangular
JEWELRY: Chunky, piled on necklaces; hardware cuffs and necklaces; oversized medallion pendants and rings; big double- and triple-hoop earrings; Lucite and metal sculptural cuffs and necklaces; plexi cut-out charms