Rei Kawakubo traded dandies for dainties when she presented her Fall 1995 “Sweeter than Sweet” collection. It was “her most romantic and feminine Comme des Garçons collection” to date, Vogue said. Spreading sweetness and light has never been Kawakubo’s m.o., though, and her mission here was to push pretty to the point of cloying. “I wanted to express extreme sweetness, a sweetness that is almost overpowering,” she said.
Still, it was possible to take her sugarcoating at face value and just enjoy the show, with its candy-shop variety. Perhaps as a reminder that feminine stereotypes can be restrictive, there were many shroud-like pieces, as well as capes and coats that restrained the models’ arms, hampering their upper body movement. For the evening numbers, Kawakubo made use of ultra-feminine tulle, which she wrapped over jackets and used for hoopskirts. The pearl-colored panniered and bustled finale looks were immortalized by Irving Penn, who photographed the lace and lamé wonders on Irina Pantaeva for the October 1995 issue of Vogue.
