Sandra Choi looked to the natural world for a rich — and playful — Jimmy Choo collection done in a mix of jewel tones and nods to the natural world. “I wanted to declutter, and work with the elements I love — suede, wood, and semiprecious jewels,” said Choi during a walk-through of the collection, where shoes were perched on plinths made of cork and mirrored surfaces. New styles included sling-backs with low, squareish heels and pointy boots made from cork, while delicate ropes of jade-like beads doubled as ankle straps on green suede sandals. Colored gemstones sparkled from the heels of high suede sandals or from those of gold leather ones, while transparent beads like small soap bubbles spilled over the front of suede mules. Perspex 3-D flowers edged in black blossomed across pointy-toe shoes while carpets of gold beading looked like a precious crystal formation on the front of handbags. Stay tuned for the label’s upcoming collaboration with Off-White set to debut at the latter’s show next week in Paris.
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Valextra marks its 80th anniversary this year and for spring 2018 it has teamed with English designer Bethan Laura Wood. The designer has added her eclectic use of color and details and her technical approach to shapes in the collection, dubbed “Toothpaste.” “I was looking at Valextra’s strong painted edges and came up with the idea of these graphic lines that don’t go from A to B but move around these two points in curves,” Wood explained. This translated into wiggle handles and details in different colors that add an artistic, fun and youthful touch to the structured Valextra bags. “Her engineer-like precision and association of colors are incredible,” said chief executive officer Sara Ferrero.
Sergio Rossi once again celebrated its rich heritage by dipping into the archives for its SR1 presentation. The exaggerated pointy-toe flat, referencing the namesake’s 1997 creation, made a return. Indeed, the Nineties were back in full force. The brand also unveiled mary jane styles in citron, raspberry and blue lagoon.
Hot on the heels of those showstopper collaborations with Rihanna, Manolo Blahnik has created a capsule collection with Spanish espadrille label Castaner. “Flats for the beach and heels for the evening,” Blahnik said. Emerald green satin pumps with a rope woven heel? Sold.
Details and embellishments were key at Hogan, with luxury sneakers embellished with a plethora of denim flowers, multicolored laces and colorful pearls. Cork or iridescent platforms added a youthful and fun touch to the sneakers.
Eclectic as ever, Giuseppe Zanotti‘s spring 2018 extravaganza combined contemporary scuba fabrications with crystalline crowd pleasers. The label has also reimagined its logo in the shape of a lightning bolt.
René Caovilla turned its attention to a more wearable silhouette for spring. Cue chic embellished slippers plus plenty of other low-heeled styles. Glamour was still high on the agenda though and all the undersoles came painted in gold or silver glitter. The perfect exit shoe.
Furla presented three models of bags in 52 variations, one for each week of the year, and 52 straps to define each piece — all embellished and decorated with different details and embroideries. Inspired by Venice, the bags emphasize Italian craftsmanship as they were made with fabrics created through traditional techniques, woven on vintage shuttle looms. Nature was the fil rouge throughout the collection, showing floral patterns and animal designs.
At Fratelli Rossetti‘s presentation colorful suede sandals, loafers and platforms contrasted with classical oxford shoes in a neutral palette.
Gianvito Rossi‘s spring 2018 collection featured some fetishistic little ankle booties made entirely of latex. This is the man who invented the naked shoe trend after all with his signature PVC detail pumps. There were also exquisite lace sock boots, and a new sandal shape with extended pointed toe.
In advance of the brand’s 60th anniversary next year, Casadei reimagined its signature blade heel, encasing it in Perspex just like a very svelte art installation. A further innovation was a capsule line of soaring sock boots with tiny bows running all the way up the back of the leg.
Borsalino looked back to the Sixties and Federico Fellini’s “La Dolce Vita” with a collection of wide-brimmed hats adorned with a silk foulard in a geometric pattern or a caiman leather band. The storied company also presented two-color hats in black and white with raffia crochet decorations.
Joyful, bold colors took center stage at Elena Ghisellini. Along with presenting a new charming rainbow version of her signature graphic clutch, she worked denim in different washes to deliver cool patchwork handbags. She also introduced a new chic and functional style, a soft tote embellished with a knot on the strap.
The lip motif is a Giannico signature and the designer iced it up for spring in glittering crystal. Best in show? Embellished kitten heel mules with neat crossover ankle straps in jewel-colored metallic shades.
There was so much sparkle at Paula Cademartori‘s spring 2018 presentation it had guests reaching for their sunglasses. Jewel-colored pumps and sandals came embellished with asymmetric crystal swirls that will not only get the party started, they’ll bring it with them.
Venetian slipper label Vibi Venezia has teamed on a capsule line with bag designer and milliner Matteo Perego di Cremnago for a line of stripey furlane slippers.
Samuele Failli‘s raffia fringed sandals with their chrome and flocked pearls were a strong followup to the designer’s fall 2017 debut. Tribal with a contemporary twist, they came in both heeled and foot friendly flat iterations. The collection is already carried by Matchesfashion and Barneys New York.
Martina Grasselli’s Coliac line mainlines in pearls but this season she’s upping the ante with crystal and jet detailing as well. The step-down spring 2018 updates on her signature brogues were a standout.
Joshua Sanders reworked his feminine ruffles in Neoprene for spring with pool slides and winged sneakers in punchy shades of blue and yellow. He also did a super light collection of sneaker sock boots in a plethora of hues. An expanding Italian label that’s one to watch.
Attico‘s spring collection was inspired by the eccentric protagonists of documentary film “Grey Gardens.” Metallic leather updates on the brand’s classic Diletta sandal are definitely for extroverts. Ditto purple V-front mules sprinkled with hundreds of Swarovski crystals.
Continuing with their mission of updating the heritage of Cambiaghi, which stems from old world Italian millinery, Matteo Perego di Cremnago spoke about bringing fresh elements of the Seventies into their high quality Italian-made bags. “We started basically with the Seventies from fall, and we evolved it into spring as well — so you’ll see a lot of suede in cappuccino, also a light blue and white combination as well as updates on our classic Gilda bag,” he said. For the summer, the totes and clutches were done in lighter materials such as canvas and raffia to add a lighter touch.
Rock ‘n’ roll is considered the essence of the Salar collections, so it was no surprise that this season, Elvis Presley served as the inspiration. “I wanted to use pastels and Elvis used light blues and pink to dress so it went really well,” said Salar at his presentation. He also drew from Elvis’ iconic eagle jacket — translating it into a graphic pattern on various bags. For spring, there is also a capsule collaboration with graphic artist Finnano Fenno, which Salar described as “very pop.”
“I really wanted to create bags that make people dream about something positive; the references are very bright colorful, arty — to make people wonder,” said Les Petit Joueurs’ designer Maria Sole Cecchi. The result was a fun collection of bags with glittery palm motifs, beaded hearts, sparkly fringe and the studded depictions of the word “love.” This season, the line expanded into new categories such as small leather goods, stickers and interchangeable straps on shoes and maybe even coats in the future.
“The collection is all about femininity,” said Orciani‘s creative director Federica Orciani at her showroom presentation, citing jellyfish as her inspiration. “They are really sumptuous creatures, like women,” she added. On bags, she traced them as “glow in the flash” patterns — meaning when photographed, the flash makes the pattern light up. Elsewhere she offered a variation of luxurious exotics and classic leather shapes soft enough to bend while still maintaining their shapes.
Alessandro Enriquez took cues from his Spanish and Italian heritages, fusing the two via the use of classic Italian leathers and shapes juxtaposed against playful flamenco-inspired elements such as pom-poms and raffia, resulting in a fun and playful collection. “This is very much who I am and so I wanted to represent that in this collection,” Enriquez said.
At Cesare Paciotti, boundaries were pushed with plastic finishes on ruffled pointy mules and crystal embellished pumps and sandals. Color was also a predominant factor, as the offerings ranged from a wide palette of pastels to bold satin red and yellow.