Topshop’s Cruella de Vil show
Cruella de Vil the new style icon? Yep. If Topshop’s autumn/winter 2011 Unique show is anything to go by, the villainous heiress will be the style muse to channel come autumn. Looking to 101 Dalmatians for inspiration, the Unique design team created a fun collection featuring white faux fur coats peppered with black Dalmatian spots, a black skirt suit with Dalmatian-esque lapels and hems, and white sailor dresses with spatterings of black that would take pride of place in the wicked fur lover’s wardrobe. Grey sweaters were also emblazoned with prints of Disney’s 1961 cartoon film based on the Dodie Smith novel, and chunky ankle boots and ribbon-tie heels were also Dalmatian-inspired.
Elsewhere in the collection there were silk blouses with Peter Pan collars, gangster pinstripe jumpsuits and trousers, shirts featuring New York skyline prints, sailor dresses and hats, and button-down pencil skirts evoking 1930s industrial America. There were nods to the glamorous and decadent style of Hollywood in that era too – think black crushed velvet dresses, Hollywood Hills tees, polka dot trousers, Art Deco-style car motif shirts and sparkly gold T bar sandals.
Karen Bonser, head of design for the Unique collections, also cited the films Bonnie and Clyde, and The Great Gatsby as sources of inspiration, as well as the costumes of chorus line dancers on Broadway. Her dream modern-day celebrity to wear the items? “Definitely Rihanna,” she said. “She would look amazing in the pieces.” Here’s hoping.
All the models had Walt Disney-inspired hair that was pinned into two high rolled ponytails made to resemble cute Mickey Mouse-style ears secured with black velvet ribbons. Make-up was fresh and dewy with smoky black kohl eyes and bleached eyebrows, with some models even sporting dog-like noses in painted black. Even the nails were white with Dalmatian spots.
In keeping with the dog theme, the models - think Dree Hemingway, Tali Lennox and Bambi Northwood-Blyth - strutted down the catwalk at London’s Old Billingsgate Market to a soundtrack of Puppy Love by Donny Osmond and Hound Dog by Elvis as a starry front row, including American Vogue editrix Anna Wintour, Topshop boss Sir Philip Green, Alexa Chung, Nicola Roberts and Pixie Geldof, looked on. Woof!
Topshop Unique invited us backstage to bring you a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the making of the autumn/winter 2011 show. Watch our video below to see all the backstage action. Enjoy!
Picture: Unique autumn/winter 2011.
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