Milan Fashion Week: Dolce & Gabbana autumn/winter 2013

Hard to say whether it was the looming spectre of political omnishambles that made Italian designers cast rose-bespectacled eyes towards our own island last week. Suffice to know that in the run up to Italy's general election last night, tartans, kilts, formal dress shirts, tweeds, riding boots and velvet riding hats (the kind health and safety have all but outlawed), have all been a big feature on Milan's catwalks. This affection for British style sometimes comes across as a triple gorgonzola cheese-fest, with a side order of ricotta. Nostalgic? You bet, but also rather flattering.

A few designers delivered such a romantic view of Britain - Celia Johnson meets Stella Tennant - that you found yourself wishing we really did dress like this. Such was the case at Dolce & Gabbana. "This collection is very Brit," Stefano Gabbana said before the show began, leading me through a labyrinth of backlit mirrors where scores of models were being made up to look like Sophia Loren in her heyday, towards rails of lush tweeds and delicate lace.

Loren wasn't the only Italian reference to slip through British customs: mosaic-effect prints on wool organza tunic dresses or enamelled onto sunglasses were inspired by Monreale Cathedral, a Norman structure outside Palermo. There were more Catholic church touches: elaborate gold filigree sunglasses and crowns (a few of which will be available to buy), a new box-shaped bag named after Agata, patron saint of Catania, henceforth immortalised in crocodile - and a slew of sexy Sicilian widow kitten heels, some as low as 35mm. To compensate for the lack of heel height, waist lines had been raised to half-way up the ribs - a cunning trick that optically lengthens the leg and slims the waist.

SEE MORE FROM MILAN FASHION WEEK

Once the show began and the models progressed down the catwalk in their three-piece suits (flared jackets, some padded over the hips, or coats, worn over tunic tops and midi skirts) the cleverness of Dolce & Gabbana's tailoring became even more apparent. Tweed isn't always the most fluid fabric but these Prince of Wales check and Donegal flecks looked supple, feminine and refined, whilst toeing the strong, architectural line that has been a key feature on New York's and London's catwalks as well as here in Milan. Whether women will wear these beautifully structured clothes, rather than merely admiring them, is a moot point. But like Prada, Dolce & Gabbana will produce a commercial line of lighter tweeds come next winter, including cashmere knits printed to look like tweed.

Meanwhile, backstage again, Gabbana explained that "you don't have to be strict, or formal or over-elaborate, to be elegant nowadays." As if by divine intervention, a flesh coloured g-string, dangling from a rail, interrupted both our eye-lines. Brit style: the contemporary version.

Via: Milan Fashion Week: Dolce & Gabbana autumn/winter 2013