Sounds silly, but there’s something about having Cate Blanchett in the house that has a definite psychological effect when watching an Armani Privé show—you start imagining you’re seeing it through her eyes. Blanchett is a beautiful woman who has never put a foot wrong in what she chooses to wear, somebody with discriminating taste who seems to be down to earth at the same time as being one of the greatest actresses of our time. When you see her in a front row, the what-would-Cate-wear exercise becomes a morale stiffener: Obviously it couldn’t be anything fussy, or merely just halfway decent. It would have to be something with a glamorously grownup presence, but with a no-nonsense simplicity about it.
Sorting through this season with Blanchett-glasses on presented no particular anxiety at Armani, as it turns out. The designer built up to a theme that included black velvet and Swarovski crystal embroidery. Would it be the black velvet harem pants? Interesting maybe for someone, but too fashion-y for Blanchett. For day, perhaps the black-and-white vaguely deco-patterned coats would fit her taste for ’30s styling. But really, at the finale, it was the long black velvet dresses that had her name all over them. There was one that plunged in a deep V, and another with a high neck, long sleeves, and a narrow skirt with a slit in front. On balance, really, it would have to be the latter.
