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MILAN - Milan's womenswear shows hit their stride today with leading designers Dolce & Gabbana and Giorgio Armani showing very different views of what they think women should be wearing next winter.
At D&G, Dolce & Gabbana's younger line, the golden duo went wild with leopard print, even using it to decorate the catwalk.
The designers took a disco theme and mixed it with hints of 1940s starlets in the dressing room.
Leopard print negligee-style evening dresses in floating chiffon encountered black velvet smoking jacket-style evening suits complete with long cigarette holders.
To the sound of 1970s hit song Disco Inferno and Madonna's Like a Virgin, models swung out in leopard print shorts so short that, in winter, they could only be worn at the hottest nightspots.
Dolce & Gabbana, who say they draw inspiration from the great directors of Italian film, morphed the big cat spots into abstract ones for silk day dresses.
Heels were high and spikey -- a sharp contrast to the flat pumps at Giorgio Armani, who said after his show that women don't need to teeter to be sexy.
Armani dressed his women almost entirely in skirts or dresses, which ended just above the knee and used a gentle bubble curve to keep them feminine rather than smart.
Coats had exaggerated pockets to flare over the hips before turning in again to echo the shape of the skirts.
Armani, known for his flowing, classic styles, branched out with latticed arm-covers, criss-crossing limbs from just below the shoulder to the wrist. He covered up hair in glittery "cybernets" for what he called his woman of the future.
Armani also stepped away from his usual black to show dove greys, pinks and midnight blues, and put sparkle and lacquered black straps on bodices to contrast soft silk skirts.
The finale was a chandelier of a dress, made using what Armani called "leaves of crystal" to create a full-length dazzle.
Armani, whose exhibition of dresses has now moved to Milan's Triennale, will outline his ideas for younger women at his Emporio Armani line later this week, while Dolce & Gabbana get sophisticated for their main show.
Later today, British design house Pringle shows its winter thoughts for the first time in Milan. It follows compatriots Burberry, whose show is early evening.
- REUTERS
