A Ralph rainbow landed at Lauren’s Milan palazzo, with a lineup of silk shantung jackets in tangerine, bougainvillea pink, emerald and bright yellow.
A Ralph rainbow landed at Lauren’s Milan palazzo, with a lineup of silk shantung jackets in tangerine, bougainvillea pink, emerald and bright yellow. The dazzling color set the mood for this natty, Franco-Italian Riviera inspired collection, a mix of spiffy tailoring, smart separates and featherlight knitwear.
The collection was tighter and more pared-down than those of past seasons, more about fabrics than logos, and in step with the luxe lifestyle the label purveys. In addition to those mood-boosting jackets, which came with navy shantung trousers and espadrilles, the Riviera vibe came through in a cluster of white or ivory linen tailored separates made from lightweight silk.
Navy knitwear, stripy sweaters inspired by nautical flags and a neat fireman’s jacket, inspired by the one Lauren once spotted on Elizabeth Taylor, were also in the mix, as was a pair of wide-legged, high-waisted jeans with a breezy Seventies feel. Sailing jackets were made of an eco-nylon created from recycled plastic bottles, part of a larger push by the brand to source, manufacture and work in a more sustainable way.
The formal clothing was a study in subtlety, with lots of tone-on-tone dressing in shades of khaki, caffe latte, mocha and light gray.
There were dinner and safari jackets and double-breasted styles in washed silk and linen and loosely woven tweed. A lightweight silk trench layered over a khaki crewneck and trousers had a Humphrey Bogart in “Casablanca” feel. At one point, tone-on-tone morphed into fabric-on-fabric, with one look featuring a jacket, tie and shirt all done in the same lightweight gray micro-plaid cotton.