MILAN, Sep 27, 2005/ FW/ --- Continuing her ‘no trousers’ season that she started yesterday with her Philosophy line, Alberta Ferretti treated her audience today with a sweetly feminine collection that embraces the spirit of Helen of Troy.

Helen of Troy, the face that launched a thousand ships and according to legends, even the gods thought of her as the most beautiful woman in the world. And for Spring / Summer 2006, Alberta Ferretti proposes that women embrace her strength and beauty.

Opting for neutral colors with splashes of red, blue and black, Ferretti set the romantic tone of her collection by opening with a deceptively simple sleeveless column dress embellished with a bow.

Box pleats that is almost unseen, except for a hint of black peeking through, the Italian designer successfully combined structure and fluidity in one garment.

What followed was a series of play on what is ‘rigid’ like the triangles and squares prints seen on separates and Grecian inspired dresses, then through a draping, ruching and pleating, Ferretti created flowing silhouettes without losing the geometrical shapes strict compliance to form.

And that is the genius of this collection, a convergence of two very different elements – one rigid while the other one is fluid, combined to create unforgettable looks.

Breaking new grounds in fashion, Alberta Ferretti proposed new twin sets – an A-line skirt with the top with two bands, one at the hipline and one at the bustline, for structure, then putting tiny pleats in the fabric in-between to give it a sinuous shape. The matching jacket was color-blocked to compliment the ensemble.

Alberta Ferretti made it very hard to choose what is the most outstanding in this collection. Each of the looks has a ‘character’ that you would want to get a hold of.

And like Helen of Troy whose beauty became synonymous with the unyielding high walls of Troy, as the Trojans fought for their homeland, Alberta Ferretti took the best elements from this Greek myth and translated it into an ode to femininity and the spirit of womanly grace.

The message: Style and elegance endures like the legend of Helen and Troy. As trends in fashion come and go, femininity should be unyielding to its pressures and be able stand on its own beauty.

Alberta Ferretti

Alberta Ferretti

Alberta Ferretti

Alberta Ferretti

Alberta Ferretti