Oversized Birkins meet Mary Quant: fashion embraces women at every age
Designers are celebrating girlishness while simultaneously acknowledging the extremely busy life of most women. It’s the oversized Birkin meeting Mary Quant.
Fashion has long been a love letter to women in various ways. Take the great couturiers – the late Azzedine Alaïa practically worshipped women’s bodies.
“For me, fashion is the body,” Alaïa said in 1982. And that’s the female form he’s talking about. Coco Chanel’s gift to women was freedom; clothes that weren’t rigid or constrictive gave them a new way to be elegant. Mary Quant’s miniskirts were infused with fun and daring besides being something independent women could hoof it to the bus in.
At the moment fashion is celebrating girlishness while at the same time acknowledging the extremely busy life of most women. On the recent runways for Italian luxury brand Miu Miu, Miuccia Prada sent a powerful message to the harried among us as models came down the catwalk with kooky cardigans buttoned a little skewiff, messy hair and bags tucked into the crook of the arm, looking as if they were running late for work and going through the endless list of things to do in their minds. Indeed, some models appeared to have been too busy to put trousers on! Others carried overstuffed bags bearing a change of outfit and a spare pair of shoes inside.
These resembled the everything-but-the-kitchen-sink bags many women carry.
Exhibit A: my own, crammed with approximately 27 of my son’s Matchbox cars, a suite of lip balms, various snacks, important documents scrunched up at the bottom and the Christmas card I meant to send to great-aunt Bertha last year. Creative directors of the uber luxury label The Row, established by former child stars Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, tend to sport battered and overstuffed Hermes Birkin bags lately, in homage to Jane Birkin herself who famously crammed her eponymous Birkin to the brim.
Girlishness, meanwhile, can be found in froths of tulle at Chanel and Molly Goddard, in love heart cut-outs at New Zealand brand Maggie Marilyn, the return of sweet Mary-Jane shoes and bows everywhere from cult New York label Sandy Liang to Irish designer Simone Rocha.
The sugar rush has serious undertones. Women choosing not to squash down their own sense of style or wearing a boxy suit because they think they have to is a true power move. Some people may scoff at such clothes. Tell them the $5 tutu Carrie Bradshaw wore in the opening credits of Sex and the City just sold for $US52k.
Trend: Heart-shaped jewellery
Wear your heart on your sleeve (or indeed ankle, ears or even in your hair) with these sweet jewellery pieces. Heart-shaped jewellery is believed to have origins in the
15th century, and it’s just as delightful as ever.
Q&A: Heleena Trahanas
Who is your summer style icon?
Locals in Europe living their everyday lives in summer. I love people-watching when I travel ... I could sit on the beach or in a cafe/restaurant or bar or meander the streets for hours. There’s so much to absorb – art, music, nature and people.
And your ultimate style icon?
I have a few, including Peggy Guggenheim and Rei Kawakubo. I’m drawn to their artfulness and unconventional approach.
Most treasured souvenir?
One of my first rings, purchased from a jewellery store in Tripoli, Greece. It’s still among the 25 rings I wear every day – it has become a treasured piece, an extension of my body.
Favourite way to entertain?
Cooking up a Mediterranean feast with my friend and business partner Alexandra Heard for our family and friends. We love dreaming up a menu, then creating a table space to pair with the food. We dress the table with our table linen and hand-painted Apulian ceramics, often in a breezy palette of green and blue with added pops of colour which all bring life to the table. We will often style the table with olive branches, Mediterranean florals, fruit, vegetables, oyster shells or pebbles. We love to transport guests to a long summer’s lunch enjoyed in Italy or Greece.
Your philosophy on style?
Style as an art form – to question, provoke and push boundaries.
Favourite era for fashion?
Now or the future. I’m a woman of my time.
Live By Your Rules
Consider this permission to seek out full-throttle romance whenever possible. Why not wear a red-engine dress to a coffee date? And fancy knickers always? Definitely spritz your best perfume for a dash to the shops. Whenever one can, slouch about (preferably on a chaise longue) eating chocolates that promise to lift your life vibrations.
