Milan Fashion Week: Cape makes a comeback

Madonna may not agree, but Armani says the cape is the fashion statement of the season

Madonna stumbles whilst performing on stage during the Brit Awards 2015 at the 02 Arena in London. AP photo

The cape is making a comeback in Milan this season — even though Madonna may have something to say about that.

The pop singer took a spectacular fall when her Armani cape suffered a wardrobe malfunction at the Brit Awards this week. The fashion-conscious needn’t worry that as Giorgio Armani says the bull fighter’s cape that brought down Madonna during a live performance at Brit Awards was meant to be closed with an easy-to-undo hook. She wanted it tied instead.

“Madonna, as we all know, is very difficult,” Armani said with a smile and a shrug backstage after his Emporio Armani show. “That’s all there was to it.”

Many of the capes showing up on runways during Milan Fashion Week, in its third day on Friday, are much less rebellious than the matador number Madonna rocked, many built delicately into the garments.

Highlights from Friday’s shows, which include Emporio Armani, Giamba and Versace:

Giamba Buzz

When Selma Hayak Pinault shows up in the front row of a brand that her husband, French fashion magnate Francois-Henri Pinault, does not own, the buzz is official. Valli stunned the crowd in Paris where he shows his main line with a dramatic frothy cape that cascaded to the floor. He had a more dainty version on display in Milan: a wispy short sweep built into a black-and-white mini floral dress, which was belted thrice for emphasis.

Valli dedicated the collection to the “Instagram Girls,” who he said inspired the looks. “When you are young, you need to have courage to be who you are to the very end,” he said. “The more you do, the more you are beautiful.”

Primary Versace

Donatella Versace has pulled back noticeably on her bling deployment. No silver studs or golden Medusa heads here.

The collection promoted the brand’s identity through the familiar geometric Greek key pattern, which was woven in traffic light colours into tights, stamped into raised patterns on leather, recreated in graphic variety on knitwear and formed the platform of Versace’s chunky high-heels.

Emporio Armani

Giorgio Armani gave a soft male silhouette to his Emporio Armani line for the youthful dressing crowd.

“There is no longer the desire to dress so differently from men,” Armani said. “Today’s woman is strong, she doesn’t lose her sense of femininity, and maintains her autonomy and her precise identity.”

Armani expressed femininity through volume. Armani’s feminine space included the color palate, dominated by jewel tones of amethyst, ruby and sapphire, graphic Ikat prints and traditional girly touches, with a twist.