milan for me was once again a big, fat bore. the big names (gucci, prada, dolce) did not excite me, and the designers that i’m usually hotly anticipating (bottega, jil sander) were just “meh.” as i started to pour over photos and videos of each collection, nothing really jumped out at me, until i happened upon no. 21, the new line from alessandro dell’acqua. “new” is sort of a misnomer; the line has actually been around for three seasons, started after dell’acqua left his namesake line after a dispute with its owners. no. 21 focuses more on daywear and suiting, but still has the sophisticated eveningwear that he’s know for.
the fall collection has the perfect balance of masculine/feminine and glam/minimalist that is so of the moment. i loved the solid coats, pencil skirts, cropped pants and long sleeve popovers but equally impressive were the cream/black marled sweaters (especially the cardigan with a black lace back), the sequin & feather trimmed pieces, and the lace separates and dresses at the end, done in soft, sorbet-like colors to keep it from getting too vampy. the thing i loved most is that it felt grown up yet whimsical, because a girl can’t be stuffy all the time.
pics from style.com
