Wikipedia states that the island of Sicily measures 9,927 square miles. Not that big, really, but for more than three decades, Domenico Dolce (it’s where he comes from) and Stefano Gabbana
have harvested an incredible amount of inspiration from it. And never
more so than for this coming fall, as they looked to the exquisite
Venetian and Byzantine mosaics of the twelfth-century cathedral in the
city of Monreale, a place of worship consecrated to Santa Maria Nuova.
(This last comes not from Wikipedia, but from the press release.) They
drew on the workmanship and allure of these painstakingly produced
mosaics and used them for their stunning vision (heavenly or otherwise)
of elaborately gilded and embroidered glamour: dresses that gently
traced the lines of the body to a few inches above the ankle, or which
were cut loose and short, and bejeweled tees worn with even more
bejeweled tiny skirts.
Enjoy the Dolce & Gabbana FW '13-14' Fashion Show at the end of this post!
Love, Andrea
That, though, was only the
beginning, as the designers took us on a journey that went northward to
Rome to the era of Fellini and Cinecittà. Not just in the look of the
bella figura
double-peplum jackets and hourglass dresses, cut from a salt-and-pepper
herringbone tweed; the show’s sound track was from the director’s
musical collaborator, Nino Rota. (Incidentally, if you think that tweed
appears a tad substantial weightwise, don’t worry; on a preview of the
collection a couple of days ago, a curtain was whipped away, and lighter
versions are all ready to go.) From there, it seems we journeyed far
westward to the New World, to Hollywood, alighting at the set of Alfred
Hitchcock’s
North by Northwest and
Marnie,
with tweedy check clutch coats and abbreviated A-line dresses. Then,
like Dorothy clicking her sparkling ruby slippers and chanting, “There’s
no place like home,” we were back in Sicily, with a gorgeous closing
finale of a multitude of evening dresses worked in red lace, though not
one that was long, many encrusted with gemstones.
What came
through the strongest in these was the sense of how to elevate day
clothes, which have been missing in action, and much missed, too in these
past few weeks of shows. Still, things weren’t too practical and
workaday. Accessories lent an element of fantasy, with crown headpieces
that were part saint, part
principessa, huge cross earrings,
and delightfully playful shoes, that variously incorporated rich papal
purple or cardinal red velvet, baroque carved platforms, and golden cage
heels entwined with little floral buds. All in all, an upbeat and
uplifting way to approach the end of the Milan season.
Selections by ANDREA JANKE Finest Accessories
Photo Credit/Source: Dolce & Gabbana
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