Julien Macdonald and Right Said Fred could probably argue all day and night. Too sexy? No such thing chez Macdonald. "I'm a sexy man, and I love a sexy woman," the designer purred backstage, after his boudoir-rific flesh-and-frills show at the grandly appointed Banqueting House. An incongruous setting? Slightly. Certainly a contrast.
But Macdonald—who's shown here for the past three seasons—claims to thrive on its quintessentially British monarchical history. The designer describes his work as traditional English with a twist. Here, though, his intentions weren't exactly royal. The striped ticking on oversize jackets and shorts—the few opaque moments of this show—was taken from an old English deck chair, while the florals on some of the sheer, lacy, bedroom-glamour dresses came from vintage twenties frocks. Sex is not a British strongpoint, of course, and even Macdonald seemed to acknowledge that, borrowing a cup of it instead from Los Angeles in big, back-combed Valley of the Dolls hair.
A coat with an appliqué over sheer panels offered a way to see you through see-through, but an obvious question remained hanging in the perfumed air (the runway was spritzed generously before the show began): Where can you wear these clothes without looking like you're heading off to seduce someone in a hotel room, or simply left the house in a hurry? Dresses that show off all a girl's assets might simmer on some of the hottest models in the business. But for real women? That Fred guy said it right.
