NEW YORK: Red
Pushing red for autumn is a classic, safe move in the fashion chess game. Red was more dominant than ever, mostly in deep, bright shades: Victoria Beckham called her reds vermillion, magenta and merlot. Marc Jacobs dressed models in burgundy guipure lace and lipstick-red rubber; Diane Von Furstenburg chose pillarbox red for her pioneer-meets-party-spirit collection.
LONDON: Longer skirts
After an extended period of leg-fixation, fashion has moved on. At London fashion week, the new below-the-knee length was modelled by Samantha Cameron, in a mid-calf-length skirt by Christopher Kane. On the catwalk, skirts were sometimes softly tulip-shaped at Clements Ribeiro, or narrowly fitted at Jonathan Saunders, but most designers appeared to agree that an inch or two below the knee is autumn's headline hemline. More wearable than short – but don't skimp on the heel.
MILAN: Check
Checks are the new stripes. Miuccia Prada ditched the shop-awning wide stripes of the summer collection in favour of checks, with styles ranging from two-tone windowpane to washed-out Mondrian squares. Earlier at Maxmara, cosy coats came in knitted blanket-check. Both collections seemed to allude to kilts as an influence – Maxmara with the leather tab-fastenings on the coats, Prada by moving the fastenings of coats and dresses to the side – suggesting that next season's spin could be the return of the kilt.
