Milan Fashion Week: menswear

Fendi, Spring/Summer '09 (scroll down to read the review)
Fendi
Silvia Venturini Fendi described the Fendi show as a 'work on folk' from around the globe. Fendi's menswear is modern, reduced and almost minimal, so when they use artisanal hand work, it is flawlessly integrated with the spare - the finished results are miles away from anything resembling its roots of Chinese embroidery, Mexican ruffles, Indian colour or Sardinian tapestry.

The expert skills of craftsmen are part of Fendi's DNA and a closer inspection is always required. The saddle bags had what Fendi called 'neo-geo inlaying' where leather was laser cut in a geometric tile pattern (of Middle Eastern origin) and sewn back in place with the brands signature Selleria stitches. Micro-smocking adorned the waistband of trousers, cuffs and plastrons of shorts, the miniature scale making it so subtle it was mere texture.

Lightness, an important Milan trend, was seen in almost every piece: from voile-like cotton shirts to super-fine cotton knits and collarless shirts cut in glove-weight Nappa.