True colours - The Eighties are back
Pictures: Independent Woman
• amfAR cinema against AIDS
• Celebration of the Arts Gala
• What to expect premiere London
• Billboard Music Awards Red Carpet
• Men In Black 3 London Premiere
By Constance Harris
Monday Jul 6 2009
For me, a big part of the joy of fashion this season has been the explosion of colour, which is being coupled with a revival of avant-garde Eighties’ tailoring and the shapes and silhouettes devised by fashion greats such as Azzedine Alaia and Issey Miyake.
“Yes, like it or not, the Eighties are back in a big way,” fashion stylist Sinead Flanagan confirms. “Neon was splashed all over the runways from Dries van Noten and Marc by Marc Jacobs, to Moschino and 3.1 Phillip Lim. It's a huge trend that you can't miss — partly because it's so damn eye-catching.”
But no look and no era ever comes back just as it was. It comes back with a new, different twist.
I am especially loving how some people, such as our creative team today — Sinead and photographer Emily Quinn — see that the Eighties’ movement of, say, black jumpsuits and cocktail bustier dresses marries fabulously with this season’s love of electric colour.
Fashion stores with a good design-aesthetic, in all price brackets — be they Warehouse or The Design Centre — are embracing summer’s dictate of mono-colour dressing.
In make-up, a key rule is to either emphasise the eyes or the lips — but never the two together. The same goes with fashion and colour. If you are going to wear fantastic prints, you have to play down accessories, make-up and hosiery because otherwise you will look like a clown. But if you wear bold, mono-coloured clothing, you can get away with having a playday with all the rest.
“If you're shy about looking like an Eighties’ throwback, keep your neon limited to accents and accessories,” advises Sinead. “Add a pop of colour with a bold stripe on a sweater, a pair of day-glo tights or even a shot of colour on a hair accessory or bangle. If you like to make a statement, pump up the volume and reach for clothes that are voluminous and sculptural.” The other beauty of this Eighties’ revivalism meeting with tropical colour is that it is the sophisticated fashion mavens and not Topshop teenies who can carry this uber-hot look off. It’s the thirty-, forty-, fifty- or sixty-something, who walks with confidence, who loves Preen, La Petite Salope, Anglomania, who really gets how bold is so cool.
‘This time around, the looks are a more fancy, grown-up version,” Sinead says.
It’s as if we, the fashionistas of the world, are giving the two fingers to recession oppression.
To quote Galliano: “It’s not a creative crunch.” As Cyndi Lauper sang: “Girls just wanna have fun.” Always. This year, fashion is supporting the cause.
- Constance Harris
