Etro
MILAN, October 2, 2004
By
In a season when India is inspiring so many collections, Etro—which uses a paisley print as its brand identity—is more entitled than most to roam the subcontinent. Sure enough, that's where the collection went, but via the seventies hippie route. That meant a combination of canvas patchwork sparkled up with dangling-coin embellishment (on a shorts suit and coat) and drifty, diaphanous printed fabrics, sometimes crinkled and pleated (for romantic dresses and smock tops.)Some of these colorful pieces were luxuriously attractive. One of the standouts—which could make a lovely entrance at any party—was a long, flowing seventies-style dress with belled sleeves, detailed with pinwheel pleating in the Empire bodice. The neo-flower child might also consider dipping into the butterfly sleeve, Zandra Rhodes-type elements of the collection—the tiny vests and soft plissé, floor-sweeping peasant dirndls.
As always, however, with shopping the one-world market, it's a question of picking and choosing. Sometimes, there is only a sliver of a difference between the "I've been to Goa" fashion statement and the one that's already available for $30 at the Portobello Road market.
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