Thursday, September 9, 2010

Ladies Who Lunch: Silvio Liu Spring/Summer 2011 Collection

Constantly in search of what will be the next big thing, I am hitting the shows at Mercedes Benz Fashion Week in New York.  While I most certainly will be going to some of the big name shows, I find it just as interesting to search out the up and coming designers and see their fresh take on the fashion scene.  My first show to report on is the debut line from Silvio Liu, a partnership between designer Brian Wood and industry production pro Danny Liu.

The Silvio Liu collection of eveningwear takes its inspiration from “the soft feminine palette of the French Impressionists and the bold patterns of the Fauves painters.”  This influence can be seen in the pastel spring colors as well as taking a brighly colorered print and softening it with an overlay of créme pleated chiffon. The print was created by deconstructing Matisse’s portrait of Madame Matisse, The Green Line, and rearranging it into a digital print.  This print also is used throughout the collection as a bright accent to highlight the other colors in the collection.  The collection colors are primarily nude, coral jade, mauve, créme, navy and black.

Silhouettes range from a drapey cowl necked jersey dress to very feminine full skirted taffeta pieces and slim pencil skirted dresses.  Mr. Wood’s background as a successful menswear designer is evident in his attention to tailoring and to menswear inspired detailing.  This collection is however in no way masculine.  It is young, curvaceous, flirty and sexy.  The drape details are very interesting, including a sheath dress in digitally printed silk charmeuse with a bias pleated overlay, which I would say is a key piece of this collection.  


The collection has been presented as eveningwear, but many pieces would be suitable for day or day into evening looks.  Along with what is mostly a dress collection, they have several jackets that compliment the dresses, including boleros and long jacket coats. The Silvio Liu collection is modern and feminine with hints of classic design, a touch of couture workmanship and a lovely spring color palette.


title photo courtesy of Silvio Liu

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