In a week where I have had to deal with a lot of incompetence at the hands of various companies and organisations (Mary Portas would be seriously appalled!), to the point of almost becoming frustrated with the world, a virtual escape to Milan Fashion Week was just the breath of fresh air I needed.

True to the prestige that the label ‘Made in Italy’ has always born, the Italian collections were not only stunning but exquisite: the styles, the cuts, the textures, the colours… We may have seen red, grey, black and white carried through from New York and London but the Italian catwalks were perhaps the most colourful ones so far in the ‘fashion week’ itinerary, thanks to Albino, Blumarine, Cavalli, D&G, Fendi, Gucci, Marni, Missoni, Prada and Sportmax to name a few, whose collections included pretty much every colour under the rainbow.

Blumarine, D&G
Alberta Ferretti, Sportmax
Fendi, Versace

On the other hand, Armani and Versace opted (especially for their second collections) for an almost totally black look, perfect for me as black is my favourite colour, which of course explains the ‘black look’ on the Caradiaz website and our overall company image.

Emporio Armani, Giorgio Armani
Versace, Versus

We also saw shades of nude, camel and chocolate brown at Aquilano.Rimondi, Antonio Marras, Brioni, Etro, Fendi, Francesco Scognamiglio, MaxMara (as could be expected) and Trussardi.

Francesco Scognamiglio, Fendi
MaxMara, Trussardi

We even saw some denim/Wild West looks at Dsquared2 and Just Cavalli.

Dsquared2, Just Cavalli

Metallics (mostly gold) were also seen courtesy of Alberta Ferretti, Bottega Veneta, Dolce & Gabbana, Etro, Gianfranco Ferré, Luisa Beccaria, Moschino, Roberto Cavalli and Versus.

Gianfranco Ferré, Dolce & Gabbana
Giorgio Armani, Luisa Beccaria
Moschino, Versus

In the prints department, Albino did a tribute to American Art, whereas Jil Sander and Missoni went for some florals, and good old Roberto Cavalli opted for his signature animal print, as did also Dolce & Gabbana and Marco de Vincenzo.

Albino, Jil Sander
Roberto Cavalli, Dolce & Gabbana

Like in New York and London, the use of fur and leather was widely spread in Milan (Antonio Marras, Moschino Cheap & Chic, Emporio Armani, Fendi, Francesco Scognamiglio, Giorgio Armani, Roberto Cavalli, Sportmax, Versace), in some instances combined with python (Dsquared2, Gucci, Marco de Vincenzo, Marni, Trussardi).

Marco de Vincenzo, Trussardi
Fendi, Prada
Prada, Gucci

Other trends spotted include a bit of utility at Emporio Armani, military at Versace, 60s at Prada, 70s at Gucci, some masculine tailoring at Dolce & Gabbana (believe it or not!), Gianfranco Ferré, Emporio Armani, Iceberg and Versus and some gorgeous ladylike looks at Gucci, Bottega Veneta, Luisa Beccaria, Marni and Moschino.

Emporio Armani, Versace
Gucci, Prada
Dolce & Gabbana, Giorgio Armani
Luisa Beccaria, Moschino

On the jewellery front, no surprises: statement necklaces, big earrings, chunky bangles and metal cuffs at Giorgio Armani; geometric chunky necklaces and big earrings at Marni; big earrings and semiprecious long necklaces at Moschino; and 70s-looking long chains with pendants at Gucci. More unusual were the exotic necklaces and abstract pendants seen at Iceberg, as well as the ladylike, semiprecious sparkling necklaces at Bottega Veneta and the oversized star-shapes earrings at Dolce & Gabbana. Versace kept bling to a minimum with just the odd chunky metal bangle here and there, as did also Fendi, whose models wore either chunky cuffs or simple bracelets with dangling charms, depending on the look.

Giorgio Armani
Marni
Fendi
Gucci, Emporio Armani
Brioni, Moschino
Iceberg, Dolce & Gabbana

So which Milano pieces shall I be adding to my wishlist for next winter? Ummm… Tough decision if I have to stick to a budget but a few items, particularly a MaxMara’s black leather top and the cow print pony skirt are so ‘me’ I may find them hard to resist!

All above images sourced from www.style.com