Whether it's pattern blocking, texture blocking or colour blocking, one style has turned heads more heads throughout 2011 than any other, and often not for the right reasons. It's been a rare glossy this year that didn't include a horror-story editorial about another celebrity showing just how badly this trend can go, and there's no doubt this is a look exceptionally easy to get wrong. Hit the mark, and it's about as striking as a fashion power-play can get. Fail, and be confused with a children's party clown.
For winter this year, the season gives the look its signature twist, with an emphasis more on colour and less on the layering seen in earlier months. On the catwalks of Milan, Prada led the way for wholesaler clothing manufacturers and ladieswear wholesalers alike with a collection of outfits in a rainbow of bright hues, tied together by a single, sophisticated and shimmering fishscale texture. Meanwhile, Bottega Veneta paired the tones with the winter greatcoats that have become a must-have for this season's high octane glamour trend, for a striking, zany look in fiery crimson and sumptuous magenta.
Across the catwalks of ladieswear wholesalers, skirts and trousers are seen paired with a variety of bright tunics, another major trend this season. From Micheal Kors' navel-deep necklines and their undeniable sex appeal to the tasteful sobriety of more mature collections from wholesale clothing manufacturers worldwide, many of the pieces bear reference to the sculptural dresses of the sixties and the block paintings of Piet Mondrian, or the iconic Yves Saint Laurent panel dresses.
At Paris Fashion Week, Italian designer Giambattista Valli's collection hit the mark like no other - combining a number of this season's freshest trends into a vision of stunning winter elegance, with the usual palette of neutrals replaced by striking metallics and sultry jewel tones. Tailored, sculptural skirts drive the look forward with their avant-garde structural additions and though shorter than the classic pencil skirt they measure far longer than a miniskirt, retaining their modest elegance with ease. Surely a hit on the high street and the collections wholesale clothing manufacturers. At the neckline, a substantial silver choker keeps the outfit looking up and out, while resting a reassuring weight on the shoulders of the wearer.
The block party of winter 2011 is set to continue, and with the return of shearling and fur detailing with the colder months, texture blocking will certainly be warming up for winter. For the mean time, this challenging trend has turned heads and dropped jaws on the catwalks of Milan, London, Paris and New York, and will surely continue to do so.
