Since his show in February, Francesco Scognamiglio has separated from his business partner. Backstage he was talking about the difficulties of doing it all on his own again, but he was fairly upbeat. He named his new Spring collection Renaissance—the models' faces were covered with glitter, as if they were freshly emerged from a chrysalis—and after last season's scaled-back efforts, this did feel like a return to fanciful form. But not too fanciful. Scognamiglio seems keen to do some business. So you had a few stretch jersey ice-skater dresses and even an embellished sweatshirt in the mix, where once upon a time, when he was a good bit greener, there would've been only latex blouses and PVC trousers.
Scognamiglio loves lace, and there were scads of it here. He cut it into short dresses with squared-off backs and apron-fronts with extra volume blooming from the midriff. That's a new proportion for him, and in keeping with his idea about rebirth, it was very youthful. Scognamiglio will need Hollywood starlets on his side as he tries to raise the profile of his label. But as he rebuilds, it might be wiser to work on refining what he's already good at. We suggest starting with that gorgeous empire-waist lace cami and the floor-grazing skirt with the front ruffle kick.
