Channeling the cool-girls he went to school with in the 90s, there was a distinct Clueless appeal to the looks Carven´s Guillaume Henry sent out on the Paris runway. He is not the only one to pick up on the 90s vibe – frankly it has lingered for a while although we cannot claim to be quite over it yet. Carven´s cute-but-tough girl aesthetic was thoroughly present in the collection yet the pastel, matching dresses and cardigans and trending gingham and florals could all have belonged in Beverly Hills fashion-girl-about-high-school Cher Horowitz undoubtedly funky closet.
A body-conscious collection if there ever was one, waist-baring cut-outs and mini skirt-lenghts were supported by buckled sandal flatforms adding length to legs. Henry played with contrasting volume only in a few embroidered or multi-coloured camouflage print oversize jackets and coats – the white and printed versions towards the end of the show more of a success than the earlier darker ones that felt a bit like an afterthought. Acidy pastels and cool blues and lilacs blended in an inspired way in revamped tapestry florals and camouflage prints, while red and beige ginghams made for a more muted palette later in the collection.
Henry provided a collection sure to get mixed reviews, but also full of shop floor favourites – the black mini-floral print on clever mini-dresses, the black chocker necklaces and the black and gingham full-length shirt dress with shoulder and waist gingham inserts in particular and the prints and cutout and insert-waist detailing in general.
by Elisabeth Krohn
Images: Style.com