default-output-block.skip-main
BoF Logo

The Business of Fashion

Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.

Stella McCartney Packs a Punch

Colour, energy and movement defined Stella McCartney's best collection in ages.
Stella McCartney Spring/Summer 2016 | Source: Indigital
By
  • Tim Blanks

PARIS, France — Stella McCartney's invitation was a golden knuckleduster spelling out her name. That sent the clearest possible signal about the wallop packed by her new collection. She had powerful women on her mind — muses, the inspirations for artists, architects, writers and, of course, designers — though anyone expecting McCartney to name names would have been bitterly disappointed by her own muse. "Women are my muse," she said nebulously.

But the Stella woman she presented in Monday ticked enough boxes to suggest that maybe McCartney wasn’t being so wishy-washy. There was sense and sensuality on this catwalk; decorum and dancehall. Colour, energy and movement defined the collection. It was best in asymmetric layers of bouncy pleated knits. Running a close second were bright checks and stripes, knitted into dangerous curves. McCartney has often played off the masculine/feminine thing (here, her Savile Row training took a turn with a double-breasted jacket, sleeveless, backless, and cut just long enough to function as a dress) but she’s never done it with quite as much brio as a bias-cut polo shirt paired with a long, second-skin tube skirt. In pink.

The curves were critical. Appliqued ribbons traced aboriginal swirls and spirals on sheer dresses. The final looks featured more sheer: eyelet embroidery, undulating down the torso, body-conscious in the extreme. If McCartney has always been a designer to celebrate a woman's sensuality, there was also something more overt in Monday's show. It guaranteed that the show was the designer's best for a long time.

The recently deceased Cilla Black's Anyone who Had a Heart played at the very end of the show — a poignant reminder that McCartney has a drop of the Mersey in her own veins.

© 2024 The Business of Fashion. All rights reserved. For more information read our Terms & Conditions

More from Fashion Week
Independent show reviews from fashion’s top critics.

From where aspirational customers are spending to Kering’s challenges and Richemont’s fashion revival, BoF’s editor-in-chief shares key takeaways from conversations with industry insiders in London, Milan and Paris.





view more

Subscribe to the BoF Daily Digest

The essential daily round-up of fashion news, analysis, and breaking news alerts.

The Business of Fashion

Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
CONNECT WITH US ON
BoF Professional - How to Turn Data Into Meaningful Customer Connections
© 2024 The Business of Fashion. All rights reserved. For more information read our Terms & Conditions, Privacy Policy, Cookie Policy and Accessibility Statement.
BoF Professional - How to Turn Data Into Meaningful Customer Connections