Luisa Beccaria staged her first haute couture show in over two decades last month at the Salon César in the Paris Ritz. Maybe that’s why the ready-to-wear she presented for Fall was more focused than usual on day clothes. Those graceful, long dresses having had their debuts, this was a chance to expand her repertoire beyond weddings, red carpets, and other one-off events.
The designer, who works with her daughter Lucilla on the collection, opened with a peacock blue faux-fur coat and matching jeweled hat worn over a shirtdress in a floral print that conjured Claude Monet’s Giverny. These were day clothes, but in the same romantic spirit as the occasion dresses Beccaria has long specialized in. She cut a pantsuit in a gray-green tartan, and though the pants were hip-slung and straight, the jacket had puffed sleeves, and it topped a pussy bow blouse. The results were sweet, not strict, a sensibility accentuated by the tiny flowers embroidered on a pair of tartan coats. From a distance, those little blooms looked like snow. There were also charming mohair sweaters shown belted over wispy skirts and knee-high suede boots.
Of course, Beccaria didn’t ignore special occasion dresses altogether. The prettiest of the bunch was in a pale shade of blush with a print of hand-painted flowers. One caveat: Beccaria lavishes great care on her delicate confections; in a world of mass-produced stuff they seem made with intention. Certainly, they’re worthy of a more evocative setting than today’s show venue.
