STYLE ETC. are roaring back for spring, because Demna Gvasalia (of Balenciaga and Vetements) says so. That brash decade – which most of us who were there had no wish ever to see again – has been hovering on the fashion fringe for about two years. Young fashionistas, especially in London, have been investing in shoulder pads, cone heels and primary colours, but the idea has only gained commercial traction now that the hottest designer on the planet has turned his attention to it. The disruptive (to use the in-vogue word) approach of the Georgian designer and his anonymous collective has huge appeal to young consumers seeking a creative alternative to mass luxury, who admire Vetements’ subversion of street and commonplace dress codes and their persuading of classic brands to make pieces in Vetements’ far less conventional style. Timing is crucial with any fashion revival. Gvasalia has only taken to the 1980s this spring, in his second collection for his other job at venerable couture house Balenciaga. This requires a chicer, more structured style than Vetements, and the 1980s are neatly subversive, especially at a time when recent fashion tropes – Clockwise from top: Dolce & Gabbana Rubik’s cube squares bag; Moschino quilted leather logo bag; Casadei metallic leather pleated platform mules; Chanel tweed and leather bumbag; Prada New Baroque sunglasses vintage boho or minimalism – are on every high street and seen as over by early adopters. If you don’t remember the THE 1980s ARE NEATLY SUBVERSIVE AT A TIME WHEN RECENT TROPES – VINTAGE BOHO OR MINIMALISM – ARE ON EVERY HIGH STREET AND SEEN AS OVER 1980s, the style seems new and fresh, especially as he cleverly twists it to appear right for now and not a simple throwback. He reinvents mauve draped jersey with minimal make-up and casual hair so it comes across as believable and desirable, more like a great vintage buy than a onetime power-shoulder evening look, even if the hot pink Spandex leggings shown with it are for the catwalk rather than reality. Gvasalia is not alone. The 1980s mood has been building from other big names as well, including hot-as-fire Alessandro Michele at Gucci, for whom this is one of many decades in his gloriously overwrought mishmashes. An exuberantly ruffled, bright blue, one-shouldered dress was a standout from his spring collection, and similar, tiny dresses started popping up everywhere – in print from Isabel Marant and from Fausto Puglisi for Ungaro, one of the original 1980s glam houses – and in dead sexy black, or silver lamé, from Anthony Vaccarello in his first collection for Saint Laurent, following the lead of the now-departed Hedi Slimane’s final show there. These pieces are creating a look that will soon be everywhere, yet when Peter Dundas, then at Roberto Cavalli, tried 1980s ruching for last year it was a little too different and a little too literal so it didn’t fly. What a difference a year makes. One-shoulder ruffles are not the only 1980s codes making a return. Kenzo, Versace, Sies Marjan and Marques’Almeida are the brands adopting the sportier look of fine, sheeny, sometimes ruched parachute silk that was popular at the time – and they show how universal the trend is, as they are one each from Paris, Milan, New York and London. Céline and Louis Vuitton espouse the new wide shoulder, while animal prints reappear at Haider Ackermann and Topshop Unique. If you are unwilling to commit, there is always the halfway house of accessories: showing you acknowledge the trend without becoming a victim of it. Saint Laurent’s plain, spiky logo stilettos or Ungaro’s revival of the original heart belt, Louboutin’s dégradé leopard kitten heels, Chanel’s tweed bumbag or Bottega Veneta’s intrecciato clutchbag, as carried on its spring catwalk by 1980s icon Lauren Hutton, all have class. Prada’s latest Baroque sunglasses, Dolce & Gabbana’s Rubik’s cube bag or its ornately carved gold wood wedges, Gucci’s studded leather shoulder-pad harness, Jimmy Choo’s pink and purple bag (perfect with that Balenciaga ensemble) are all fun if you dare to embrace the “what’s-old-isnew-again” actuality of fashion. ♦ 46 DEPARTURES-INTERNATIONAL.COM
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