From superfine ribbed knits to unique weaves, the winter wardrobe is all about surface texture. With Merino wool at its heart, function meets fashion for the season ahead. Shop winter’s standout womenswear looks today.
Mini handbags might be trending for summer, but it seems that extreme binaries are at play for fall, as outerwear is exploded to extreme proportions in response. Most often double-breasted, adding to the excess of fabric that ensconces the body, designers found different ways of reinterpreting classic wool outerwear in the lines they crafted: in the menswear collections of Raf Simons and International Woolmark Prize finalist CMMN SWDN, shoulders were squared-off and padded, presenting a top-heavy silhouette, while at Anna Quan, a softer shoulder and a belted waist add to a bell-like shape.
Wool suiting is nothing new, but we typically expect to find it in the muted, office-appropriate tones of navy, black and grey. Not for fall, though, as designers reimagined suiting in a vivid array of colours – particularly for women – not typically associated with the corporate uniform. Here were magenta pink wool suits from The Attico, burnt orange worsted wool tailoring at Raey, and embellished houndstooth at Gucci. Not all suits are created equal, though, especially when designers are pushing the boundaries of tailoring codes as they have done this season. Silhouettes are varying with buttons shifting up or down, and asymmetry is created with extra panels – draped or tailored – across the torso. Trousers are both longer and shorter, and cut wide to push the line between skirts and slacks, and front pleats have been replaced with zippers for added, unconventional hardware.
In terms of knitwear, jumpers, dresses, cardigans and jackets all took to varying sizes of ribbing this season, and were layered for maximum effect. For International Woolmark Prize womenswear winner Colovos, the beauty was in the detail, using an ultra-fine Merino wool in a lightweight and tight ribbed knit, creating a figure-hugging silhouette. The effect was similar at Marques’ Almeida where asymmetry reigned, but here the designers amplified the width of the ribbing in rich olive. Particularly in tonal hues, these knits bring a classic texture back to the world of knitwear.