Fall 2023 Trend: Red Sea
“I think that a woman dressed in red is always magnificent,” couturier Valentino Garavani once declared.
For fall 2023, his signature shade saturated the runways, with the brand’s current creative director Pierpaolo Piccoli leading the charge. Red rosette and bow embellished pelmet skirts, an homage to Garavani’s “Fiesta” cocktail dress from spring 1959, and sweeping floor-length dresses gave feminine contrast to his lineup of black-tie suiting that WWD reviewer Miles Socha pegged as resembling the go-to look of another couturier, Karl Lagerfeld.
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At Maximillian Davis’ second collection for Ferragamo, which Socha declared as “a step up from his debut,” the designer further solidified his bid to make red synonymous with the house, showcasing outerwear and a plethora of new handbag styles, all done in the same electrifying shade.
Elsewhere in Italy, Ferrari designer Rocco Iannone referenced the car manufacturer’s speedy cherry-red convertibles with looks that included a kimono coat for her and leather boiler suit for him. The genesis of the coed collection, Rocco told WWD’s Luisa Zargani, was exploring “beauty in motion.”
In Rosemary Feitelberg’s report, Pantone predicted the tidal wave of monochrome red looks on the runways. The institute cast Red Dahlia and 2023’s color of the year Viva Magenta as star players in its seasonal New York Fashion Week palette, labeling the former as an “animated red encouraging experimentation and self-expression” and the latter as “elegance personified.”
The primary hue’s ability to be both classic and modern means it can suit a wide variety of styles.
The separates at Hermès in warm tones inspired by auburn hair would make for easy wardrobing. Showing off the color’s sultrier side were leather outerwear and lacy, lingerie dresses at Prabal Gurung, Mugler and Bally.
Meanwhile, Carolina Herrera and Emilia Wickstead, both of which can be counted on for old-Hollywood glamour, offered gowns to stand out even on a matching red carpet.
Launch Gallery: Fall 2023 Trends: Red
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