The corsetry trend continued today from across the Atlantic, showing up at Luisa Beccaria’s ultra-feminine, capital-R Romantic Fall 2016 show in Milan. Whereas New York designers like Victoria Beckham, Tome, and Hood By Air slashed and ripped and twisted and twerked the waist-whittling classic into submission, Beccaria chose a more literal translation, putting corsets in brocade and tweed over printed chiffon blouses, flowing dresses, and at least one thick-collared knit pullover for an effect that she described backstage as “quite Marie Antoinette.” It was that. It was also a little Swiss Miss (when the blouses fell off the shoulders in a few looks), a bit Disney princess (when the stretch velvet came out), and undoubtedly very pretty, as in the case of a breezy embroidered tulle frock with ribbon trim that crossed under the bust, whose passage provoked the fear that some onlookers, arms and iPhones outstretched, might topple into the front row.
Beccaria had caught an exhibition of the work of Jean-Étienne Liotard at London’s Royal Academy of Arts earlier this year and found inspiration in the painter’s depiction of velvet and choice of colors, specifically his deep teal, saturated turquoise, and powder pink. “These are the colors that look good on women in winter,” the designer said. Some more modern iterations of these hues were on hand, as in the case of a blue algae–color mohair sweatshirt or a windowpane check used in separates and slim-cut dresses, the latter perhaps best advertised on the back of Beccaria’s daughter and codesigner, Lucilla, who showed straightforwardly how one might wear the collection without fear of erring too far on the side of the Renaissance Faire. Lace-trimmed satin ribbon choker necklaces with pearl drop pendants inspired lust among onlookers—some of whom envisioned pairing them with white T-shirts and blue jeans for a look that, coupled with one of the powder blue robe coats (replete with songbird brooches) while not quite out of the court of Louis XVI, could certainly do the school pickup and still convey a hint of romance.
