Most of my style is formed through what I find enticing by my own eye and what fits my personality and mood. However, the artistic display shown in Valentino’s spring 2015 ready-to-wear runway show struck a chord and inspired me. Valentino, in this set, shows a beautiful experimentation with vivid color schemes paired with the natural glow of skin. They did this through layering and playing with lengths on trousers, dresses and skirts while also meticulously placing holes in sheer pieces of fabric for skin to peek through the clothes. Even while much of what Valentino creates is much more structured than what I normally prefer for myself, the end result of this particular runway show was so natural and eye-catching that I couldn’t help but try to adopt some of the pieces’ most interesting elements into my own wardrobe.
As I said before, my style is much less structured than what can be expected of most Valentino pieces. However, I did concentrate on three aspects of the show in particular: length, layering and sheerness. Being the wannabe hippie I am, kimonos have always been common pieces found in my closet. I throw them on over almost everything to give them a little girly or edgy flare. The one I wore today is new to my kimono collection, and it accomplishes Valentino’s look in two ways. It is what is known as a duster kimono, meaning it theoretically should dust the floor as one walks. While this one doesn’t quite hit the floor on me, it does add an interesting length especially when paired with my mesh mini embellished slip from Free People. In addition to its elongated length, it also has the flowered slits and cut-out effect as seen in Valentino’s show in the arm bands.
I layered my duster on top of this embellished slip particularly for the color of the slip. The deep cerulean blue, even though it is only a mesh material, pops against the light backdrop of the kimono becoming reminiscent of the vivid colors displayed in Valentino’s spring runway show. It also adds to the play on skin as it is completely sheer. The sequin embellishments and assorted jewelry pieces were my way to add some personal flare to the look.
Get My Look: 1. Duster kimono. 2. Shorter dress or romper. 3. Statement jewelry.
