Vionnet Pre Fall 2014 (21)

PARIS, Jan 7, 2014/ — Madeleine Vionnet is credited for inventing the bias cut, but fashion insiders know that the iconic French couturier is also famous for pleating, one of her favorite techniques when accentuating the female form.

For the Pre-Fall 2014 collection, the House of Vionnet highlights its founder’s masterful pleating technique. Reinterpreted with a contemporary flair with calculated geometry and proportions, narrow and wide pleats are used in outerwear and knitwear to create volume and thus recreating Madame Vionnet’s elegant and sophisticated allure.

Embodying the spirit of the collection, an ample, flared gray felt coat, cinched at the waist with a belt, shows elegant pleats in back. Its austere, yet hyper-feminine silhouette reappears in a grey flannel plissé maxi dress with sleeves trimmed in soft green leather, used again as a lining for a sporty yet ultra chic hooded bomber jacket.

A primitive tribal vibe runs through the collection. A cozy jacquard wool cape is embellished with a cave art-inspired motif, which is also printed with bronze pigments on a wool and cashmere vest with beaver details and two swinging Golden Island Fox tails.

Geometric patterns with an ancestral slant are embossed on both a roomy jacquard top with contrasting georgette silk and an accessory that claps at the waist evoking Scottish kilts.

Photos courtesy of Vionnet