Consuelo Castiglioni's Resort collection was one more reminder why "quirky" is a word that has always followed Marni like a faithful pup. Why, in the midst of a collection of typically idiosyncratic forms and clashing fabrics, should there suddenly appear a pony-skin and leather cowboy shirt, cropped over a denim bra and high-waisted jeans? Or a pink patterned velvet jumpsuit looking like something from Anita Pallenberg's closet circa '68? Actually, the questions answer themselves. Why? It's Marni. Just like the Urban Dictionary says, "quirky" is "weird in a good way," and Castiglioni is a past mistress of the outré. The sideways-slipping silhouettes, the peculiar proportions, the inverted layers that provoke the eye are staple ingredients of one of the most consistent visions in fashion. Lately, it's felt a little like Castiglioni was trying to dial down the quirk. Her interest has been more in purity of form. But, for some designers, Resort is playtime, and, this season at least, Consuelo joined them. There was a conversation going on between proper and perverse in her clothes, the way that strappy tops in eye-popping prints were layered over prim long-sleeved tops, or a very covered-up dress, falling primly to mid-calf, was cut from an equally loud floral print. In fact, it was the prints and patterns that kicked the collection into high gear, with a little help from those curiously luxurious fabrics that Castiglioni is so partial to. Her favorite was a crepe satin. But she liked the wrong side, the matte side. Quirk it!
