MILAN — Just as the Northern Hemisphere begins the wardrobe transition from summer to fall, runway shows in the fashion capitals of the world aim to ignite the imagination and desire for the next warm-weather season.
Designers in Milan have been unclear about the seasons in recent fashion weeks, with summer collections failing to match rising temperatures. That wasn’t the case during the first day of Milan Fashion Week previews on Tuesday, which featured sheer, dreamy summer dresses and crisp cottons.
Here are highlights from the first day of Milan Fashion Week with runway previews of mostly womenswear for spring-summer 2025:
Fendi honored its upcoming centenary with a Spring-Summer 2025 collection that elegantly paid tribute to the era of its founding, from Art Deco details to a flapper silhouette with light edges.
In conversation segments that punctuated the show’s soundtrack, Silvia Venturini Fendi emphasized the matriarchal lineage that has made her the third generation to play a major Fendi role. “My mother was the energy of the house,” Venturini Fendi remembers.
The collection from Kim Jones, artistic director of Fendi Womenswear, aimed to spotlight ‘100 years of very chic Roman women’, combining ready-to-wear with artisanal couture details. Sheer dresses with art deco embroidery were paired with boots. Underdresses were twisted. upside down like skirts, worn with a sheer top decorated with crystals. Knits defined the silhouette, under checks or hugging the body over sheer trousers.
Bags from Venturini Fendi, artistic director of accessories, were soft and cuddly and often worn in triplicate.
Alberta Ferretti showed off her summer creations in the courtyard of a former convent, now a science museum, with an elegant dome in the background, the juxtaposition highlighting the artisanal heritage in her collection.
Instead of decorations, Ferretti concentrated on technique. Laser cut cotton created an almost lace effect. Individual cotton leaves were stitched together as dresses or accents on bodices. Pleating, elevated dresses, while boxer shorts added a casual flair.
The daytime looks were in earthy shades of sand, ecru and black. For the evening, chiffon dresses flowed in bright shades.
“They are real summer clothes, because the world is very hot in the summer. I know a show should be a show, but reality is important,” Ferretti said backstage.
Marni maintained its crazy heritage under creative director Francesco Risso, with a wardrobe full of whimsically tailored everyday looks for him and for her.
The feminine silhouette was dressed in tight-fitting dresses and skirts, often with deep slits in the back, sometimes with a mermaid flair. Feathers, boas and crystal embellishments were beautiful and sometimes unusual accents.
For him, broad-shouldered jackets contrasted with skinny trousers. A non-slanting bow on a chiffon blouson was held up by sartorial trickery.
Combining art with fashion, the models emerged in threes and wandered through the showroom full of wooden chairs in conversational groups to a percussive piano trio.
A sense of Marni whimsy permeated the collection, partly but not only through a range of hats with an old-world military flair, made light with feathered accents. Risso seemed to confirm his Napoleonic intentions by bowing with his hand in his coat.
“We like things that are bold,” Risso said after the show.
