29 August 2010

Back In Black

As promised, I have finally gone through all of the gorgeous collections at Copenhagen Fashion Week for Spring/Summer 2011, and as I said before, I am quite in love with what Scandinavia had to offer! I suppose the best way to do this would be to give a rundown of the trends I saw popping up most often, followed by some of my favorite designers this season. Here we go...


Trend #1: BLACK




You might not usually include it on your usual colour pallette for the warmer months, but if there was one colour that appeared in just about every show (and when I say 'appeared' I mean DOMINATED), it was black. Dresses, skirts, blazers; black was all over the runway. While there were few that didn't include black, it was rare that a collection was nothing but black (they lightened up occasionally with some greys and whites). I suppose that's excellent news for anyone wanting to recycle wardrobes... Perhaps the continuation of black into spring/summer collections is a helping hand in light of the financial crisis sweeping the globe? Either way, it's pretty clear: Scandinavia is forcasting dark times ahead.


Trend #2: BLUE


   

When a real colour arrived, the first one that really did it for be was blue. There were some pastels as might be expected for spring, but the blue that was used most effectively (in my opinion) were the darker shades along the lines of royal, as demonstrated here by TSH and Peter Jensen. Both brands were extremely colourful in comparison to the others, incorporating not just blue, but reds, greens, and yellows as well. I was a big fan of the boyfriend blazer at Munthe plus Simonsen, personally.


Trend #3: YELLOW


   


It wasn't as noticeable as the blues, but yellow also had a subtle influence on collections, appearing every now and again in full outfits, but also in minor details, including bags at the CIFF Press Show, skinny belts at the CPH Vision Press Show, and bows on shoes at Ils of Norway. A favorite seemed to be yellow dresses, with several appearing at Marlene Birger, Henrik Vibskov, and at the show featuring Designerskolen Kolding's BA students. On another note, Minimarket actually had a bright yellow runway for their show at City Hall.


Trend #4: STRIPES


   


Stripes were absolutely everywhere. They came in pants, they came in skirts, in dresses, vests, and comfy shirts... But seriously, stripes are in, no question. while most shows had only a couple elements in each collection, Bruuns Bazaar was noted for using stripes fairly frequently, as was the dark circus themed Moonspoon Saloon, and I don't think Ivana Helsinki's nautical themed collection had a single look that didn't incorporate them in some way (and usually a major one at that). Another thing about the stripes: it doesn't matter what type of stripes they are. You can have horizontal stripes, vertical stripes, big and little stripes, dual tones, tri tones, it doesn't matter. Just make like a zebra this spring and you're well off.


Trend #5: PRINTS


   


Prints were another important facet of the SS11 runways in Copenhagen, and often took over entire looks. Ivana Helsinki used a number of prints, and in most cases, combined them with her overriding stripe trend. Stine Goya had a major focus on prints in his collection, while TSH provided flowing gowns with multicoloured prints that sometimes recalled the colours of Alexander McQueen's SS10 'Plato's Atlantis'. For the most part, this trend was restricted to sun and maxi dresses, but as Goya asserts, if you want those printed harem pants, go ahead and rock them. Another thing you might want to remember is that the prints were rarely animal inspired. PETA take note.


Trend #6: HEAD SCARVES


   


Headscarves were an interesting edition to a number of collections. We saw Lady Gaga-esque draping happening at the glam rock inspired Bllack Noir show, while Margit Brandt favoured a sleek side knot for her safari girls. Every single one of the top heavy models at Ivan Grundahl teetered down the runway in massive black and white turbans (I suspect that this was the reason they were also wearing high-tops and loafers). Malene Birger topped her (also safari inspired) collection in a similar fashion to Brandt, but with the addition of a cute fedora.


As you may or may not have caught from my Gossip Girl post, I am very partial to the rocker chic at the present time. So as you can imagine, I was very pleased to see that black was so common in Copenhagen. I looooooved the collections at Bllack Noir, Karen by Simonsen, and S'nob de Noblesse. Spon Diogo was  also great in the LBD department. I was also quite taken by the safari collections at Margit Brandt and Malene Birger, and the looks at Munthe plus Simonsen were in no way dampening my spirits.






On another note, I would encourage you to check out the AMAZING SHOES at Moonspoon Saloon... Apparently they were each hand painted by Tal R, which according to Didder Rønlund makes them about as valuable as anything similar from the big Parisien fashion houses (dare I even mention McQueen?). Anyway, the shoes are essentially encrusted in these colourful pinecones, and amidst the blacks and dark browns and maroons of the collection, they really stand out:


   


Once again, CFW was excellent; it's surely only a matter of time before it becomes added to the seasonal rotation with New York, London, Milan and Paris. If you want to have a look at the runway shows yourself, you can visit the Copenhagen Fashion Week official site, where they list all the looks from each show. I'll also link you to the Gallery, where a huge number of designers presented their collections. The site lists the different brands they hosted the past month, and provides you with direct links to their official sites. If there are specific brands that you would like me to do an exclusive look at, please let me know and I'll get right on it. I'd also love to hear what you lot thought of CFW this year: what were your favorite looks? Did any brands in particular stand out to you? Why do you think there is so much black for a usually colourful season? And most importantly, how do you feel about Peter Jensen's pairing of athletic socks with sandal stilettos and flats?
 
Peace, love, and floating,
Gill Ford


All photos courtesy of Copenhagen Fashion Week®

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