ANDREA JANKE Finest Accessories: La Garçonne by Giorgio Armani FW 2013/14

As the designer responsible for putting women in power suits, Giorgio Armani doesn’t consider menswear to be a passing fad. His clothes are consistently about sharp tailoring, clean lines, and a reappropriation of masculine tropes. What differentiated his collection this season was the French savoir faire that ran throughout. He noted that his influence was la garçonne, that independent female archetype of the thirties whose sense of liberation was reflected in her borrowed-from-the-boys wardrobe. So Armani’s version of menswear this season retained a sense of softness. Models were dressed in cropped, fluid pants that often sat at the hip, and streamlined jackets, cropped or longer, and fastened with one or two gumball-size black buttons. The palette was ebony and white with shots of icy lavender and blues, and nearly everyone was shod solidly in pointed-toe oxfords or block-heel loafers.

Enjoy the ARMANI FW 2013 Fashion Show & Backstage video at the end of this post!
Love, Andrea

Both of which the shades of blue and men’s footwear do, in fact, happen to be appearing a lot on the runways so far this season. Armani also hit on a few other themes including velvet used for loafers, tapered pants and, for evening, long black skirts worn with beaded tunics, and this idea of the non-invasive bag. What does that mean? Well, it’s basically the antithesis of the statement bag, which, even after the death of logomania, still holds sway. Now it seems, though, that designers are proposing a subtler way to tote our things: an accessory that doesn’t detract from the clothes but, through its exquisite construction or quietly elegant details, still commands attention. Metal handles have been a recurring motif, and Armani put them on top of hard bags shaped like squat briefcases done in velvet, patent leather, and pony. In many cases, the bags matched the looks monochromatically so that, were they not this strong, they would not have been noticed. There were also bigger bags in doctor shapes and for night, soft patent clutches. Lacking any tricks or adornments, they were a reminder of another kind of power: the power of simplicity.