MILAN, Feb 21, 2007/ FW/ --- As the world moves deeper into the 21st century, fashion is at a cusp as it tries to define and adapt to the global village concept of the high-tech world. And Consuelo Castiglioni is ahead of the curve in dressing the 21st century woman.

Unveiling her Fall 2007 / Winter 2008 collection today, it was a wonderful blending of natural fabrics like silk and organza with high tech materials like nylon and polypropylene. Add to that couture elements like embroidered applications and encrusted Swarovski crystals, Consuelo Castiglioni’s vision of the future is deceptively ‘minimalist’ yet feminine, sweet and most important of all, very original!

To say that the collection is futuristic is only half of the story. Castiglioni’s clever convergence of heat fused fabrics with knits and furs are inventive and innovative. And though the silhouettes are mainly structured and architectural, there is interplay of movement and softness as seen on the fluid lines of skirts and knee-length dresses.

Trousers are generously cut, and baggy at times with the addition of pleats in the front. There are cigarette pants too, but tailored so that they will not constrict movement.

Sweater dresses come in bold bright colors, cut at the hip and then fused again to give it a slight flounce. The same goes with the organza tunics though the treatment was different. Cut wide, a sewn in sash made from the same material slightly gathers the dress at the waist while the wide sash ends in a bow.

And this would not be a Marni collection without the famous Marni whimsical prints and accessories. A Marni code, the prints came geometric or abstract. There are the chunky collar necklaces in hand-painted perforated latex and there is the horn or colored resin pastille decorative placements.

Beautiful as the collection was, it was the outerwear that stood out. Done in latex or polypropylene tricot, they featured inverted zipper placements. Brief leather jackets, fur stoles, a knee length coat done with a mix of polypropylene and fur, a girl could not go wrong choosing any of these to keep herself warm for the winter.

Marni

Marni

Marni

Marni