Wednesday, October 12, 2016

Doll's Eye View: Milan Spring/Summer 2017 Trends

One thing I can count on in Milan, somewhere during their fashion week, there will be pretty clothes. And spring summer trends here do not disappoint. Many of the trends we've seen elsewhere--stripes, black/white themes, asymmetrical detailing, short-shorts and maxi hems--also all woven into designers' messages here. But here in Italy, true to form, there is lots of lace for super girly styles, interesting fabric treatments for upscale looks, as well as crisp clean lines, all of which makes for timeless, keepsake fashion.

Cloak Room
Coat hemlines race up and down the leg. Our favorite is the mini length coat, belted at the waist. Here, they're shown with sandals, but we also love accessorizing this length with thigh high boots as well. If you're going to make a coat for your doll, consider making a trench coat. Here we love the foiled florals on the face of Fendi's coat. But watch out....the 1980's with its super wide shoulders has begun creeping onto the catwalks! It will take awhile for our eyes to adjust to this silhouette, but slowly, shoulders are getting pumped!
We really loved the look of the Fendi coat. On close examination, we noticed the floral decals with areas of foiling. For Estelle's coat, I selected a linen. I had a bit of cotton chintz on hand. I carefully cut out a bit of its blue floral print. The idea is to simulate a "placed motif" effect (as opposed to an all over print--which is why I didn't use the print fabric for the base of the coat). Think of this as "decoupage." Using fabric glue on the back, I applied my cut-outs to the face of my A-line coat and ironed them in place. I applied foil to parts of the floral pattern. Though I had made a belt out of the printed fabric, everything came out so lovely, I decided not to belt the coat.

Peasant Girl

A very popular look that began last summer, this year's version of the peasant dress reappears with bare midriff tops, off the shoulder puff sleeves and cotton lace stovepipe pants.

Crème Fraiche

Creamy, rich with just the right amount of swirl and tangy goodness, these are very pretty feminine dresses for late day and evening. Silhouettes are pretty much straight forward and simple. Silhouettes skim the body in light, airy fabrics or lace.
Bringing back the simplicity and grace of the 1960's, Naomi wears a simple shift dress with full sleeves. For the embellishment, we made small loops from 3mm ribbon, flattened them with an iron and stitched them in place.

The Pin-Up
These are not bathing suits! They are super-short-shorts and a micro-mini dress, inspired by the pin-up girls of yesteryear like Betty Grable or synchronized swimmer, Esther Williams!

This was such a cute look with its bra, short-shorts and shirt, we couldn't resist interpreting this for our doll, Violetta.

Towing the Line
By now, we can see that stripes are a staple for summer styles. What we like here is the simplicity of style and the boldness of line.

To illustrate how simple stripes are worn..... Billie's dress is a simple tube dress made from a striped sock! Stunning!

Frayed!
One of the most stylish ways to wear denim blue! From the denim top and shorts to Armani's sheer coat over sheath dress, it's the details that make all the difference. And the details here are frayed or fringed edges.
It's interesting to see how few designers incorporate denim looks in their collections. So my younger Barbies were thrilled with this look. Jerry wears a flared tunic over shorts. Denim on this scale would have been too stiff, so we used a denim-toned silk instead. (You can also use a blue cotton chambray.) The neckline and armholes have lace trim added to mimic the look of a lace shirt. What we also liked here, are the matching boots!
 
Fruit Punch
There's not a lot of color on the catwalks these days. But what there is that my girls liked, were taken from the colors of fruit: raspberry, kiwi, lemon, mango, tangerine....

The Gallery Scene
Soup can labels, pizza box tops, abstract etchings....everything art has been lifted from the galleries and transformed into clothing. The things to note here: again, simple shift or sheath dresses, mix and match of patterns, matchy-matchy: dress with matching handbag and shoes.

Zen
Time to cleanse the palette. Choose simple lines and shapes for a classic look that works for most dolls.
This is an easy, 3-piece outfit that simply works. This is a shortened wrap blouse, straight trousers (where I extended the waist and have not closed the darts), and a straight coat with a collar

Summer Storms
From overcast skies to ominous clouds and  raindrops on the window, the mood is subtle elegance delivered via interesting fabric treatments.

Angels and Demons
What's black, white, naughty and nice? This group of lacey dresses with off the shoulder flounces, layers of lace and punctuated waists. Note the range of hemlines.


 She's a pin-up and a devilish angel, Carmela wears a version of Ermanno Scervino's "bathing suit" dress. This is a super short slip dress that we added medallions of lace. Over her shoulders in the opening shot....a vintage black "chapel veil" made of netting and velvet ribbon!


Coming up next... the final stop of Fashion Month....Paris!

Text and images property of Fashion Doll Stylist. 2016.

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23 comments:

  1. I spend very little time looking at the runway fashions. I'm always so excited to see what you come up with. Again they are all fabulous, but that coat and that yellow outfit near the end..... to die for!

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    1. Thank you, Vanessa. I love doing this exercise because it's my way of recharging the batteries. I try to pick something a little different from what I've done before and there's always the surprise as to how it will come out. But with Milan and Paris, I know I'll end up with a few nice surprises. The coat was one of them.

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  2. Jesteś Mistrzynią Kroju i Szycia! Uwielbiam oglądać uszyte przez Ciebie ubrania! Wspaniałe wszystkie stroje! Twoje panny zdecydowanie wyglądają korzystniej i ładniej niż modelki :)))
    Pozdrawiam serdecznie!

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    1. Olla wrote: You champion cutting and sewing! I love looking at your sewn clothes! All the costumes are wonderful! Your Miss definitely looks prettier and more preferably than the model :)))

      Thank you, Olla. This is always fun. But the best part is that I have the perfect models! And yes, they are more beautiful than the humans!
      Best wishes!

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  3. Did you make the denim bag and boots? They look quite professional!
    I like the first dress in the "summer storm" lineup, I think that style of straps is the most flattering.

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    1. The denim bag is an old Barbie accessory someone gave me as a gift but the boots are mine. I started with a pair of mismatched shoes which I covered in the same fabric as the dress and re-soled. I also like that dress in the summer storm group and was tempted to make it. But it is very close in structure to the Valentino inspired gown I just made a couple posts ago.

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  4. Your dolls as models are very professional! I love the white outfits inspirated by project of Aquilano Rimondi! Wooow, it's amazing ^_^

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    1. Thank you, Aya. Those white outfits by Aquilano Rimondi are amazing. The silhouette is so simple yet the results are so bold and modern.

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  5. super sesja, świetny pomysł z twarzami
    lalek na wybiegu - moją uwagę zwróciła
    nieznana mi dotąd Violetta - kimże jest?!

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    1. Inka wrote: Super Session, great idea with faces
      dolls on the catwalk - my attention was
      Unknown to me so far Violetta - Who is it ?!

      First of all, welcome to my blog, Inka and thank you for stopping by. The faces on the catwalk models is to give you an idea as to how those clothes might look on dolls as a way of inspiration. I find it helps in the creative process. The doll, I have renamed "Violetta" is a JamieShow Demi Couture doll. She is a BJD with beautiful, luminescent "skin." Though she has this vibrant red hair, she also came with a scull piece so that I may also use wigs. I love this doll.

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  6. Wow April! I HAVE to get out more (out of my own blog and life! lol)
    Visiting your site is like traveling... And to the Great Fashion Shows!
    So many wonderful photos.
    Soooo much work you've done!
    Of course my fav is the striped sock dress! lol
    Your girls must be thrilled when they see you with your needle and thread!
    I know...challenges of choices. Who models, who gets to wear an outfit on the piano...
    Bravo! Lovely posts.

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    1. Thank you so much Jano. Well I love my escape to your blog for my daily dose of adorableness!!! There are so many "sock" dresses around the internet, I've purposely decided not to do anything here on my blog. But after doing this one and seeing how trendy it can look, maybe I should reconsider. My girls are used to seeing me with needle and thread. I think they're shocked when I'm not sewing!

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  7. That white suit is my favorite. I love them all and I love the way you can translate what you see on the runway to clothes for your dolls. So many wonderful items.

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    1. Thank you Jaye. I too, love the white suit. There is something so clean, so timeless about this look that always looks modern.

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  8. I am in love with your Violetta wearing the outfit with stripes,
    you version is cuttest than the original,with that tiny bows,congrats for all
    interpretations,good job
    xx

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    1. Thank you so much M-C. I really enjoy this exercise. What I've learned about taking a look down to 1/6 scale is that you really have to simplify and concentrate on the essence of the look.

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  9. As usual all your outfits are beautiful!

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    1. Thank you, Chris. I'm glad you enjoyed this post.

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  10. Waw ! J'ai qu'un mot à dire : SUPER. Je vois que n'importe quel vêtement des défilés de mode tu es capables de les créer. C'est super joli. Bravo !

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    1. Merci, Shasarignis. C'est toujours un grand plaisir de faire ce projet. Les italiens sont tres fort ce saison! Mais je ne crois pas que je suis aussi geniale que ca. Je pense que je suis capable de recreer les vetements des defiles parce que la mode et devenue tres, voir trop simple en silhouette! Mais le but est de faire les choses pour mes poupees avec le chic et la charme d'antan.

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  11. Replies
    1. Thank you Urszula. I am happy you enjoyed this post.

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  12. It is truly a great and helpful piece of information here and nice collection.I am satisfied that you simply shared this useful information with us.Please stay us informed like this. Thanks for sharing.

    ReplyDelete

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