Dolce & Gabbana

Take a deep breath – the corset is back.

Twenty five years after they first launched underwear as outerwear, the designers at Dolce & Gabbana staged a magnificent tribute to that most saucy item in a woman’s wardrobe, at Milan Fashion Week, yesterday (Sunday).

“Because it’s feminine and sexy,” said one half of the design duo, Stefano Gabbana, backstage, after the show.

The collection, in fact, hailed The Corset as the one single piece of must-have-clothing for next spring/summer.

The Dolce & Gabbana corset appeared in rose prints, black lace, denim, leopard-spots and multi-coloured florals. It was bedecked with lace, fringing, embroidery and beads; accessorised with bucket-loads of gilt jewellery; and worn with high-heeled tulle and lace ankle-boots.

The corset’s fashion comeback was cheered on by a battalion of Brit ‘It’ girls, in the front row, including Peaches Geldof, Alice Dellal, the teenage daughters of singer, Annie Lennox, Tali and Lola, and the model, Daisy Lowe, who, appropriately, was wearing a pair of red and black, leopard-print Dolce & Gabbana knickers.

There were ‘real’ clothes, too, of course; slip-dresses, pencil skirts and, even, trench-coats. But when these appeared they were in sheer tulle, see-through black or white lace, and latticed mesh, ensuring the corsetry was never entirely hidden from view.

Bras, bodices and lacy knickers were also shown as dressing-up options for next season: Ballet-style, wrapover cardigans, for example, with black lace bloomers, or a sexy version of Bridget Jones’s ‘big knickers’. There were bustier dresses, too, which were little more than a corset with an extra layer of fringe or lace.

For the girl who feels the need for a little more in the way of outerwear, Dolce & Gabbana also introduced a new version of ‘black tie’ in the form of satin dinner jackets with jodhpur-style trousers.

The focus on women’s underwear, which has been a predominant feature of these Milan Fashion Week shows, follows on from the bra and bustier trend which surfaced at the recent London Fashion Week shows.

Hilary Alexander
Published: 3:15PM BST 27 Sep 2009

-----------------------------------------

Maybe it's just because I'm from a younger generation, but I don't think this collection is as visually or trend appealing as the D&G. This show seems to be a repeat of many of their previous collections with the women wearing suits, tight corsets, white on black, even lace coming into it again. It brings an element of John Galliano with it, but to me it's nothing special. I expected more.