Fitted, softly constructed jackets and generous trousers — many resembling jodhpurs — dominated the runway at Giorgio Armani in this laid-back collection with a Far Eastern flavor. The designer took a bow dressed in a slim, double-breasted jacket made of cashmere jersey, and, following the show, talked enthusiastically about the blurred line between supple knits and jersey for jackets and coats. “One becomes the other,” he said, referring to languid, tailored pieces with military details such as patch pockets, or sturdy zip-front cardigans with a stretched argyle pattern.
Armani also referred to the increasing fusion of Eastern and Western dressing, as in the drop-crotch trousers he paired with the myriad fitted jackets in the show. But even the designer admitted they won’t work on everyone. “You have to be very handsome to wear them,” he said. There were less extreme trouser silhouettes on offer, although these too had a carrot shape and a higher waist.
With all of the soft construction and Asian references, the question remains why Team Armani chose the theme song from Britain’s “Downton Abbey.” Ralph Lauren has made the familiar anthem something of his own – he sponsors the program in the U.S. — and it has nothing to do with Milan — or the Italian peninsula.
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Asked about it backstage, Armani said it suited the “refined, gentlemanly mood” of the collection. And while no one is asking that he speed dial Ennio Morricone, there was surely some more appropriate music to accompany his fall outing.