Miu Miu.. Again
For the past few years Miu Miu has felt like an easy pull straight off the runway for stylists. Obviously this signals at potent styling courtesy of Lotta Volkova which is why it’s been such an easy go to. I can’t help but feel that in some ways the frequency at which a copy and pasted Miu Miu outfit makes way to a red carpet or magazine cover dumbs down the power of Miu Miu and Miuccia Prada’s unique eye.
Part of the appeal of Prada’s (henceforth in reference to designer for Miu Miu not brand Prada) work is the awkward balance between the power of beauty and the repelling awkwardness in a colour scheme or silhouette- something Prada does in both of her lines. This push and pull has made Prada consistently dominate the fashion game for decades. Her designs are backed by a spectacular knowledge of her own craft and design ethos, and with narratives and show notes that can transcend the bullshit of the fashion world in an enchantingly effective manner, Prada’s work deserves more than to be clickbait.
I first started to notice the repetition of Miu Miu sets with the SS22 micro mini skirt that dominated the fashion world as it appeared on front covers and photoshoots everywhere. Unique to this ensemble too is the rate at which it trickled down onto the screens of people external or uninterested in fashion as it was heavily reproduced by fast fashion brands. It was worn by celebrities, TikTok influencers, and basic girls who might not even know the Miu Miu version of their set existed. The style was a simple pleated skirt that was categorized as a micro mini because of the daring short length. The skirt is something that could have easily been replicated through a little DIY work yet through my research I found substantially less DIY versions of it than the SS20 JW Anderson cardigan Harry Styles wore which started such an online DIY craze that Anderson released a knitting pattern for the cardigan.
The current Miu Miu runway craze of a cardigan and “no pants pants” (something which for the record I have been doing for years because I notoriously hate pants) has only just begun. The AW23 runway collection was just released and made accessible to stylists and although I cannot argue with it being an objectively good looking ensemble, I have already grown tired of it being the go to. The first notable appearance was Miu Miu model and actor Emma Corrin at the Venice Film Festival. Corrin modelled in the AW23 Miu Miu show and is a house ambassador so this was an obvious choice. Last night was the UK’s answer to The Met Gala, Vogue World in London, and so far through a quick scroll of instagram I have seen four people in Miu Miu sets pulled straight from the runway- Saffron, Iris Law, Adwoa Aboah, and Cara Delevingne. It is interesting to note that at most red carpet events it is taboo to wear the same dress as another attendee yet somehow Miu Miu sets are exempt from this social norm and the media embraces it as its own event in the fashion canon outside of the “who wore it better” narrative. Another interesting point to note is that since this set is in fact a set and not a singular garment like a dress, this allows for more fluidity in the ways it can be styled, yet it is mostly styled the same as it was presented on the runway.
Harry Lambert is one of my favourite stylists and Emma Corrin’s stylist. As previously mentioned Corrin is an ambassador of Miu Miu and although I am unsure of what their contract stipulates for what they wear to red carpets, there were other looks in the collection that Lambert could have pulled for Venice. In the AW23 show Mia Goth’s look was the same cardigan, t-shirt ensemble but with a midi-length skirt. This look has yet to make an appearance on a red carpet or editorial shoot, perhaps because it is lacking the edginess of the no-pants-pants of the panties, however it all feels a bit too easy to me. It is worth noting that for Vogue World Lambert leaned heavily on Simone Rocha for most of his clients and didn’t dress clients in the Miu Miu set. I am not a stylist who has access to clients or brands of this caliber so I feel like I am not one to judge, but fashion continually feels like it is being dumbed down or being made more palatable for people who don’t have an interest in fashion, but instead want to be perceived as having an interest in fashion. The shock-factor of Miu Miu’s short skirts and panties seem to be used more for viral likes than creative and fresh styling. READ RACHEL TASHJIAN’S RECENT ARTICLE ON THIS!
