Paris Fashion Week S/S 2011: Womenswear Collections

Dries Van Noten

Dries Van Noten’s famous prints took a turn into a Japanese garden this season as stylized orchids floated over T-shirt-shaped silk dresses and wide-leg pants. But the striking prints were broken off half way down the garments, as if the Belgian designer had changed his mind half way and used an eraser to wipe away the bottom half.

The luminous dip-dye effect continued on pants that were almost jeans (blue denim at the top trim and white the rest of the way down), colour-blocked blazers and gentled shaded coats which moved effortlessly from pink to mauve. Van Noten borrowed generously from a man’s closet, most notably with the oversized mannish shirts he used as a strict counter point to an abundance of feminine sheer veils with ombre overdyes.

Wallpaper’s next at-home art project with a man’s shirt: Mimicking the cotton skirt with curved hems and a waist tie with built-in sleeves