Anglomania has gripped Milan, but at Ports 1961 the buck bypassed the much-referenced sixties and stopped at the Edwardians. Ian Hylton wanted to capture the natty elegance of England at the beginning of the twentieth century, which is excuse enough to create a cape in double-face wool/cashmere and a show-closing version in swakara, a Namibian sheep fur. The label's aggressive luxury—echoed in a mink pullover sweatshirt and a ponyskin hoodie—highlighted the way that Ports can sometimes wear its riches a bit heavily on its sleeve. Elsewhere the effect was subtler, and accordingly more inviting. "Our man has always been smart, but I wanted an evolution," Hylton said, "an urban twist." The pieces that incorporated more modern understatement and innovation, like bonded wool outerwear, better struck the balance between Edwardian elegance and contemporary chic.
