Spring 2013 Paris Fashion Week: Roland Mouret
For Roland Mouret, fashion is a method of transformation – in his own words “magic” – as he intends for his clothing to offer its wearer the ability to become any kind of woman she so desires to be. For Spring/Summer 2013, the Mouret muse is transported to the 1980s, the decade during which the then twenty-year-old designer made his move to Paris: “I was young, I had fun, we lived in a group. The reality was dark but the night was for clubbing and full of light. It was a time I felt had a resonance for now.” Indeed, for this nostalgic sentiment yet resulted in a collection that is undoubtedly contemporary-feeling and so eminently wearable, one that offers certain sex appeal to the city-ready woman who seeks day apparel that is serious and assertive but will still wear appropriate for those nights that are, after all, filled with fun and light.
The color palette was not quite spring standard: an almost electric red, forest green, a few navy and wine hues, and, for the final half of the collection, black and white done in graphic colorblocking and print. The fabrics, too, were a bit unconventional, most notably in the six looks constructed from silk treated by a mud-dyeing technique to achieve a leather-like finish. But, Mouret’s departure from the seasonal norm proved ingenious, for the palette and fabrication, particularly for those black-and-white and leather looks, is well on trend for 2013.
There were blazers, padded- and strong-shouldered, with side-pocket detail, and sharp, cap-sleeved jackets, some accented by flap breast pockets and all including gold-zip front. Crop tops were paired with high-waisted skirts to expose a seductive sliver of skin; a number of button-up blouses were cleverly cut out to highlight the clavicle and shoulders. Sleeveless dresses received interesting asymmetrical drape detail, and one-shoulder and strapless looks showcased spectacular origami-like folding, often in contrast color.
One knee-length, cream and green dress, well-fitted with v-neck, featured fabric twists at the hip so as to enhance an hourglass shape. Later, a smartly-tailored, sleeveless, black jumpsuit incorporated diagonal white paneling and a kind of wrap-around asymmetrical neckline that served the elongate the body. Motorcycle jackets with pronounced shoulders were expertly cropped and included three-quarter sleeves that encouraged the eye towards the smallest part of the waist. The collection was, in this way, undeniably flattering to the female figure, inspired by 1980s power-dressing, but reinterpreted so as to retain the feminine sensibility for which Roland Mouret’s designs are most celebrated.
To complete the decade’s theme, skin was sun-kissed, hair styled into sleek, straight ponytails with just a hint of height at the front, eyes lined in black, and nails painted with clear polish and then finished with a diagonal red stripe at the tip. It’s an effortlessly edgy beauty look that Roland Mouret fans will surely want to recreate, while wearing, of course, his incredible Spring/Summer 2013 apparel.
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Diana Minnocci is a freelance fashion journalist with graduate degrees in English and Women’s Studies. She’s particularly obsessed with fine lingerie and red lipstick, and is a lover of all things vintage. Diana chronicles her fashion favorites on her personal blog, Fashion as Literature, and you can follow her on Twitter @dianaminnocci.
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Photos courtesy of Style.com -Related Posts:
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