MILAN, ITALY — Being a woman is a blood sport, according to Miuccia Prada, who on Sunday showed her own powerful vision of the tough chic that is emerging as one of the biggest fashion trends for fall. And it didn't involve the rocker wear we've seen from so many other Italian labels, including Gucci.
The arena seating should have been a clue. Prada's vision suggested female gladiators dressed to kill in mannish, rust-colored coats slit up the sides like loincloths; jeweled, fringed suede tunic dresses and wool tabards with fur breastplates.
The cold, harsh world is no match for these warrior women, pounding the pavement in crepe-soled shoe boots, braving the floods in rubber gators and warding away the competition in killer heels with suede plumage.
Sexuality is also a fierce weapon, as demonstrated by a crimson burnout velvet dress with a deep V front, tweed skirt suits belted tight to emphasize an hourglass shape, a crystal-dusted workaday attache case and the scarlet glitter eye shadow revealed when models batted their eyes.
The clothes didn't break new ground for Prada, but they were wearable and thought-provoking all the same. It's been a hard few months for the female species, between the tearing down of Hillary Rodham Clinton and Sarah Palin. They know better than anyone that fashion is one dangerous battleground.
Nightclub Gucci
To her credit, Gucci designer Frida Giannini started doing the retro '80s rock star thing long before everyone else climbed on the bandwagon this season. The problem is that she's never been able to elevate it to the realm of luxury. So Gucci continues to look like Bebe with a bigger budget.
This season was the same song, different verse, starting with unremarkable crepe de chine kimono-sleeve mini dresses in oversized polka dots or diagonal stripes sliding off the shoulders and worn with leggings or over-the-knee leather boots.
Fur jackets, some sprayed with color or crystal-embroidered, sparkly hoodies and jogging pants, and iridescent bags that looked as if gasoline had been poured on them completed the trashy-teen picture.
Giannini's suits are always her most compelling pieces, with skinny pants and shrunken jackets. The season's best came in micro-check jacquard or gleaming black, layered over Lurex striped shirts.
