The season completed the shift from quiet luxury to eclectic maximalism and individualism, with the skirt a key piece for spring.

PARIS — Perhaps Prada called it back in Milan — but this season was all about the skirt in Paris too.

It emerged as this season’s winning piece, with buyers ready to put big bucks behind all versions of the classic piece, from fluid and asymmetric styles to statement versions in novelty fabrics, embroidery and prints. Dresses remain important, but skirts increasingly look like the season’s key vehicle for the return of femininity.

“Fashion is fun again,” said Moda Operandi president April Hennig, calling it a season of “eclectic maximalism.”

Tiffany Hsu, chief buying and group fashion venture officer at Mytheresa, saw the season mark a “return of emotion and personality,” with customers moving away from quiet luxury to more expressive, personal looks.

That doesn’t mean the end of wearability, but an evolution from ladylike dressing toward looks that have a strong sense of desire with a softer and more sensual femininity. See: bustiers, bra tops, bandeaux, lingerie, transparency, lace and fluid fabrics scattered throughout collections. The waist is back, too, emphasized by belts, ties, peplums and corsetry.

“Paris was very much about being dressed and slightly undressed at the same time,” said Galeries Lafayette womenswear and accessories buying director Victoria Dartigues.

Buyers were drawn to bold colors, especially red, turquoise, blue and yellow, as well as a dash of texture in fringe, tassels and embellishment.

Even against the turbulent macroeconomic backdrop, the good news is that budgets are generally up — but selectively, they indicated.

Source link