PARIS, Oct 7, 2006/ FW/ --- 35,000 pieces of fresh flowers and songs re-mix of the 1980s notoriously politically incorrect band Fear, Dries Van Noten unveiled his elegantly sportive Spring 2007 collection that broke all the rules!

Refreshing and groundbreaking, the Antwerp-native mixed casual and formal, couture elements with sportive, androgyny and femininity then came up with highly covetable and extremely wearable pieces for spring and summer.

Opening with a black & white ensemble of a relaxed fitting trousers and shirt layered with an embroidered square-neck apron, Van Noten immediately set the tone of the collection, his message clear from the start.

Elegance is not a monopoly of haute couture; that sportswear can be graceful and functional at the same time. Loose-fitting shorts held by a stringed belt, nylon hoodie that can work as a blouse, iridescent yellow raincoat shared the spotlight with sequined and beaded tank tops and bomber jackets.

Embroidered sack dresses, mini shift dresses and coatdresses were all reworked to become edgy, elegant and functional all at the same time. Classical tailoring was fused with sportswear elements, resulting to groundbreaking styling and designing.

And, if the collection looked good on the catwalk, it looked even better at the showroom when both the ‘edited’ version shown on the runway and the ‘commercial’ collection were available for closer inspection.

The detailing was impeccable and the cut superb. Van Noten played with texture both with the use of different fabrics and adding embellishments.

Understanding textiles intimately, Van Noten also created improvements on both natural and synthetic fibers. This was seen in both the clothing and accessories as he mixed and matched different kinds of fabrics.

Innovative, inventive and simply beautiful, Dries Van Noten came out with a winner for Spring / Summer 2007.

Dries Van Noten

Dries Van Noten

Dries Van Noten

Dries Van Noten