Jewellery & Trends Report: Spring/Summer 2010

Lanvin		Chanel		Louis Vuitton

The ‘statement necklace’ continued its reign as the most awe-inspiring weapon in the jewellery armoury, with Alber Elbaz, at Lanvin, surpassing even his autumn/winter 09/10 collection, with mega-chokers, collars and breastplate jewels worthy of a 21st century Cleopatra or Nefertiti. A new twist from the Lanvin magician was to partially conceal the necklace under a thin veiling of sheer, chiffon, which made the jewels gleam even more mysteriously. The Marni (pictured to the right) show also saw the launch of the Statement Earring, with stencilled discs and ceramic and crystal flowers the size of saucers. Both Karl Lagerfeld at Chanel and Marc Jacobs at Louis Vuitton made hair accessories the new eye-candy, with elaborate bows, pins, clips and bands.

Marni

MaxMara		Chloe		RM by Roland Mouret

No longer a scorned shade in fashion’s rainbow, beige was re-elevated to the hue hit parade in every shade from sand to camel. MaxMara mixed it with gold, brass and copper knits and silks. Both Phoebe Philo in her Celine debut and Hannah MacGibbon, at Chloe, used beige as the basis for a new, contemporary take on utilitarian shapes. Gold works particularly well with beige, so we can expect a revival for clean-cut, geometric pieces, such as bangles, disc or button earrings and simple necklaces, to work with this classic, minimalist mood. Roland Mouret, inspired by North Africa, put chunky gilded necklaces in the decolletage of his pannier-skirted dresses and stretch-knit dresses with shoulder-shrugs.

Blumarine		Balmain		Kenzo

When combat trousers and camouflage first re-surfaced at Blumarine in Milan, there was a general air of disbelief.  But then the flashback became an army on the march, spearheaded by the cult figure of Christophe Decarnin at Balmain who based his entire collection on military surplus. Beaded and printed camouflage patterns turned up at Kenzo, khaki emerged as a clear colour winner (along with beige), and epaulettes were a significant feature on coats and jackets.  Expect lashings of “scrambled egg” necklaces, decoration-style brooches/badges, ‘dog-tag’ necklaces, “camo”-effects and silver and gilt chains to drip from shoulders. All Saints, the 1990’s girl-band who made combats their official uniform have not yet announced another comeback; they should.

Dolce & Gabbana		Peter Copping for Nina Ricci Photography by Julien Claessens		Christian Dior

Lingerie and lace, and lashings of it, preferably lacing up the tightest of corsets, featured strongly at major shows such as Christian Dior and Dolce & Gabbana. Louise Goldin, in London, and Jean Paul Gaultier, in Paris, who originally invented it for Madonna, both featured the rocket-cone bra.  Betty Jackson slipped pretty floral bras OVER dresses and pinafores and even the supreme classicist, Margaret Howell, allowed a hint of bra to peep through under a white shirt. We can expect chokers as a major accessory with the corset and delicate, cameo-style necklaces and pearls, which will work with the sweet, petticoat mood of many of the dresses especially at Nina Ricci.

Dries Van Noten		Angela Missoni		Balenciaga by Nicolas Ghesquière

Dries Van Noten explored the four corners of the earth for exotic paisleys, batiks and Ikat patterns accessorised with chunky pendants dangling from multi-strand, beaded necklaces. Angela Missoni added long, tasselled ‘souvenir’ necklaces, beaded chokers and thick cuffs, worn on the upper arm, to her eclectic parade of knits and chiffon, with an Eastern feel. Nicolas Ghesquière took a more urban-tribes route, accessorising his mini-kilts and tri-coloured tunics, in hand-woven leather, techno-fabrics, nylon and vintage prints, with silver claws, talons and teeth, woven into thongs, wrapped around wrists.

Alexander McQueen		Alexander McQueen		Alexander McQueen

Alexander McQueen yet again proved himself the master of the digitalized universe with a ‘waterworld’ collection inspired by evolution and the concept of everything on Planet Earth being engulfed by a great flood.  His computerised prints were as spectacular as a coral reef, the images weirdly transmogrified depictions of creatures of the deep, such as manta rays and giant squid. Expect huge ‘collars’ like an encrustation of barnacles,which could have been dredged up from a wreck; experimentations with fibreglass; and  a fleet of marine-inspired pieces based upon sea-horses, shells and starfish.