Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week F/W 2011: Milly
By Tina Smithers, Guest Blogger and Fashion Week Correspondent
It’s official. Milly by Michelle Smith has made it into my top three must-have fashion designers, alongside alice + olivia and Monique Lhuillier. Milly’s playful, vibrant collection was a refreshing change of pace from the more serious styles and dark hues ruling the Lincoln Center runways for Fall 2011. Youthful, luxurious Gossip Girl-esque silhouettes like wool cape jackets, mohair tweed skirts, silk blouses and corduroy blazers reigned in an array of jewel tones like emerald, plum, sapphire, mustard and burgundy. Bold fuschias, mangos and cherry reds ran rampant and were styled beautifully with other brights, but also with neutrals like gray, camel and black, making the vivid colors all the more wearable. Statement prints included chunky plaids, argyle and intricate feather and medallion patterns. Needless to say, there wasn’t a piece I didn’t absolutely love. Oversize handbags and envelope clutches, along with brightly printed scarves, bucket hats and vintage sunglasses, completed the chic collection.
Front-row Milly fans (dressed in head-to-toe Milly, of course!) included Elizabeth Hasselbeck and her daughter, Grace, along with Kristin Chenoweth and Tinsley Mortimer.
Editor’s Note: We are absolutely smitten with the mango hue in this collection – how absolutely lovely! Michelle Smith’s play with vivid colors never dulls us – never disappoints us. Mix it, match it – just have fun with it! We’re thinking low-key heels for these bright hues, no?
[Photo Credits: (top photo) Imaxtree.com; Tina Smithers]