The video backdrop to Alberta Ferretti’s show on the first day of Milan Fashion Week showed the barren winter trees in New York’s Central Park. Nature surrounded by a concrete city, its beauty that much more precious because of its fragile existence, its determination to persevere against the odds a testament to its quiet strength.
Ferretti too showed how strong she is when it comes to interpreting femininity for a modern woman. Here she once again turned to her favorite fabrics – liquid silks, delicate lace and transparent tulle – and melded them seamlessly with romantic three-dimensional flora and “feathered friend” embroideries that finished off many of the garments.
The designer proposed one elegant ensemble after another, providing pieces her fans know they can count on (the printed silk gowns, the deceptively sheer lace dresses) but also made a few suggestions that required them take a risk, if ever so slightly. The silk pajama jumpsuits and the lace dresses with fur skirts cut in vertical strips were two such options.
A pair of palate-cleansing beige sheath dresses, with curving raised seams their only adornment, highlighted Ferretti’s skill at construction. As did the impressive shape of a bird formed in the bodice of a silk and lace slip gown or how she blended a soft grey cashmere sweater into undulating dove grey silk at the torso thanks to the use of ethereal embroidery.
This collection was a solid showing from Ferretti that pointed to a designer working diligently within her wheelhouse.
