Zambesi was feeling the 90s a little, too, at Melbourne, with a range of soft pants with a soft skirt over the top. One would think this would be bad taste and particularly hippie-esque, but Zambesi can do no wrong, and the look was definitely refined…
Lucy Telford is reporting for Thread.co.nz at L’Oreal Melbourne Fashion Festival (LMFF) 2010…
There seemed to be a real fusion of ideas across the board at this runway. All the collections leaned towards the 80s style, a lot of trench or semi-trench coats were in play as well as patterned leggings and ¾ pants for men and women. There was a considerable amount of black, beige, grey and navy blue with a splash of lime to olive green.
Alpha 60 was first off the line with soft silk/satin tops with bird images across the front. They had skirts so light they looked like culottes when the models walked, grey, mute colours and soft fabrics. Stylistically, I really liked that there was one model who had a section of her top tucked in, in the front. It’s a look I’ve been seeing on the street a lot and I really like how it can bring a grunge aspect to a clean look.
Carly Hunter was again, soft fabrics and a lean on the peach pink. She had a range of pants that were loose and soft in black and peach. Where Carly Hunter really stood out was the fur pendants, (pictured left) which were so refreshing in a sea of beads and sequins.
I never knew how much Nom*d was like All Saints. Their first three or four garments were stark white, which stood out from the extremely large volumes of black, and hung from the body like torn up sheets – in a good way. It seems like Nom*d is at the fore of the shift in fashion from the 80s to the 90s and the models were all wearing Doc Martins. Grunge is definitely heading back in to fashion, but at least our feet will be comfy and we won’t have to do our hair in the morning.
S!x came up spades with a variety of crop tuxedos, baggy harem style culottes and satin jackets. Satin jackets! How daring. I don’t quite know what they were thinking when they pulled out dresses and floaty garments that were clearly silken versions of the American and Australian flag. Don’t get me wrong, I’m happy to look up and see the flag on a pole, I just don’t particularly fancy wearing it around town.
They also had these bizarre furry woolen creations that had extra limbs flapping. In essence, they made the models look like a relation of Big Bird.
Zambesi was feeling the 90s a little, too, with a range of soft pants with a soft skirt over the top. One would think this would be bad taste and particularly hippie-esque, but Zambesi can do no wrong, and the look was definitely refined. They seemed to have picked up on cropped ¾ pants for men, leggings and connies with big tongues – worn like Nikes in the 80s. They had crop trenches and cowl necks. I was most impressed with their leather hood, which was almost 1920’s aviator-esque. Contrary to a lot of what I have been seeing, Zambesi went soft on the shoulders, not the power shoulders of the 80s.
TV’s splash out colour of choice was lime green, which worked remarkably well. They also evoked a little Amish-meets-1950s-housewife with long sleeve, high button up tops and high wasted bottoms. They were feeling the Danish style ‘clown pants’ with floral, baggy, high wasted pants – including an entire floral, baggy jumpsuit who I can’t see anyone wearing successfully.
Jack London was a nice look into men’s wear, which has been approximately ¼ emphasis of Melbourne Fashion Week. The most chic outfit was a grey suit, slightly shorter arms and a stark white shirt and shoes. The contrast of the white cuffs and shoes against the grey of the suit made canvas shoes look refined. Very clever.
I also noted nice little touches here and there, with the influx of long, slim ties also came a variation on the bow tie. Elongated tie tails and a small bow made for a nice mix between the two looks, drawing the eye downward, lengthening the torso, making the wearer taller. Apart from these, men’s fashion is running with the same cues as women’s; long scarves, the odd poncho or cape, twee and tweed stylings.
Limedrop had an interesting collection of cloud and star inspired patterns in floaty materials including high waisted pants with ballet backs in navy blues. They were on the metallic bandwagon with a couple of pieces glinting off the catwalk and they also had the high, baggy cropped tops that were so evident late 80s-90s. What I really liked about Limedrop was their wide variety of kooky glasses, wayfarers with an indescribable twist. Words cannot do them justice.
Lucy Telford, Melbourne, 19 March 2010
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