What exactly were all those weird stuffed insects and animals filling the front-row real estate? Turns out it was Moschino's dig at the fashion luminaries who don't turn up for the house's shows. True, Moschino hasn't been top of the pops for a long while, but that isn't to say that Franco's spirit doesn't still hover over the collection, particularly in its combination of tailored precision and punk attitude. This lot was, in fact, called "Punk-nic"—think a gingham-napkined alfresco snack with zips and safety pins. Franco's iconography (donkeys, hearts, those safety pins, the surreal bits and pieces he'd attach to things) was precisely embroidered here on shirts, jackets, and waistcoats. There was a cardigan covered with the peace signs he used so often. But the predominant impression was left by a fabric called "candycord" (which is, I'm assured, the name for a combination of corduroy and seersucker that is popular for Spring 2009) that was used in pale blue and pink suits. They seemed terribly proper, scarcely troubled at all by the presence of a clear vinyl flasher mac or a kelly-green moment that will be an early celebration of St. Pat's Day 2009. Schizo? Part of the Moschino charm, averred the ladybug two seats down.
