Is Fashion Firmly Back In Its Skirt Era? Miuccia Prada Thinks So
By Sarah Macken
The skirts to try for AW26, as inspired by Milan Fashion Week …
Miuccia Prada likens a great skirt to a T-shirt because, just like a T-shirt, a skirt is a place to brandish your ideas. “For me, I put my ideas on a skirt, the waist down, not near the face, because it’s where you can have all the possibilities,” she said on The Run-Through with Vogue podcast after Prada’s SS27 show at Milan Fashion Week. “Also, the skirt allows us to compose the different selves. Feminine, masculine, sexy, severe.” For Mrs Prada, every good outfit begins with a skirt, which is why she, alongside her co-creative director Raf Simons, dedicated an entire collection to just that. Each of the show’s 63 looks centred around a mid-length skirt. Some were sparkly and sheer, some were pleated, others boasted daring slits; all of them were quite fabulous.
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Genuine question, however: has the trusty skirt lost its sheen? In some parts of the fashion world, it has been branded fussy, outdated even. French fashion editor Emmanuelle Alt admits she has edited skirts out of her wardrobe entirely, opting for a uniform of trademark slim-fit trousers. How To Spend It editor Jo Ellison concurs, saying she finds skirts superfluous. I admit, I’m in agreement. When it comes to skirts, the overriding sentiment that springs to mind is: why bother? If I want to feel like my best self I’ll wear jeans, if I want to dress up I’ll go no-holds-barred with a beautiful dress. A skirt seems like an unnecessary midway point.
Could fashion sway us back? At the Brown Thomas AW26 fashion show, there was a high-waisted Alaïa skirt, with an inbuilt cummerbund belt, that will appeal to classic dressers. Honourable mention must go to slip skirts for reinvigorating the category, also. In that vein, Doen’s Elowette floral skirt has a colour palette that’s autumn-perfect. Meanwhile, if budget isn’t a consideration, may I suggest Marni’s tiered appliqué organza sheer skirt? Teamed with a leopard print jacket and statement loafers it has verve.
According to Miuccia Prada, the skirt is an obsession. The jury may be out at this end, but – if intriguing clothes are on the table – we’re always willing to be persuaded.
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