Miu Miu’s spring 2016 ready-to-wear runway show is an unusual mix of fabrics with a delightfully dark feel lent to a typically floral season. This collection could be described as a sartorial anomaly. However, the confusing combination of stark opposites creates a collection that, love or hate, you just can’t seem to look away from.
For the show, the designers utilized traditionally fall trends for spring. Furs, dark leathers and long sleeves are juxtaposed with spring ruffles, delicate nighties and tulle. However, the paradox does not end there. This collection features a delightfully confusing intermingling of prints such as snakeskin and gingham. Even the footwear, velvet ballet flats and chunky platforms, seems at odds.
Aesthetically, Miu Miu’s spring 2016 collection is all about pushing things to the extreme, juxtaposing laced platform boots and blackened violet lips, conservative suit sets and sheer nighties. This Miu Miu girl is bold, mysterious and ultra cool. However, there is also a deeper meaning here. Miuccia Prada, the label’s head designer, revealed that she was in a dark emotional place while creating the collection due to the death of her aunt. This led to contemplation on life and its extremes. From that dark place, this collection was born. It’s almost as if her grief physically left her body and rippled into her designs. The emotion is palpable.
I readily embraced this collection’s grunge, atypical spring style. Of course, this Miuccia madness needs to be toned down to be ready to hit the streets. A monochromatic box-patterned two-piece is enough to evoke the gingham without looking like an extra from Little House on the Prairie. As demonstrated on the runway, using fur as an accessory is the best way to showcase the textile in spring without overheating. Putting a stole over your purse or wearing furry shoes is a great way to do this. Instead of wearing tulle, I reinterpreted Miu Miu’s use of sheer fabric with this frosted motorcycle jacket. For footwear, I decided velvet high-tops represented the perfect middle ground.
When I chose to translate this runway collection into street style, the one easy decision was the beauty look. It’s perhaps the only unified style aspect that every model adhered to: dark purple lipstick.
In the end, this street style interpretation of Miu Miu’s runway captures the essence of the collection without overdoing it.
Get My Look: 1. Velvet heels. 2. A monochromatic romper or two-piece. 3. Purple lips. 4. A fur accessory.
