Milan show lifts off brimming with the widest of headgear

Oversized hats and low-down sexy style dominate fashion week launch, Carolyne Asome writes.

THE REST of the world may be heralding a minimal silhouette in gloom'n'doom shades of black, navy and grey, but at D&G, Dolce and Gabbana's diffusion line, they like to do things a little differently. In D&G land, everything is brash, glitzy and very loud.

Sometimes they show clothes that wouldn't look out of place in a Soho sex shop, although with kitsch leanings, lashings of neon or maybe a few pairs of ripped tights. But despite the ritzier layers, there's usually a lot hiding behind the trashy veneer; a deftly tailored dress that gives you curves a la Sophia Loren or exquisitely hand-sewn lace from an artisan workshop in the hills of Sicily.

So yesterday's collection was disappointing in that it lacked its usual punch and looked, well, rather cheap. Zebra-print ruched dresses worn over black-lace body stockings or pink latex zubehör tights were not a good starting point. The see-through chiffon trousers worn over bright, shiny leotards didn't improve matters either.

Nor, come to think of it, did the strapless, purple-taffeta mini-dress teamed over more Lycra leggings (are you getting a sense of repetition here?).

While the D&G boys are known for their irreverent approach to fashion, it was a collection that looked as if it had been hastily pastiched together, with little care given to who might actually wear heavily studded, thigh-high patent boots or harem trousers with big baggy crotches.

As any woman will tell you, baggy crotches (as shown in the past by Tom Ford at Gucci or by Giorgio Armani, to disastrous reviews) are not a good look, not even on a 6ft model wearing 10in platforms that should come with a health warning.

Once the brasher elements were extracted, there really wasn't much else left.

Which is a pity because if there's one thing for which Milanese designers can usually be depended upon, it's the ability to recognise their fantasy woman. By the look of things, the D&G boys had been hanging out at brothels.

Did things improve at Giorgio Armani straight afterwards? Only marginally which is a shame after the high of last Thursday's Earls Court extravaganza and the presentation of his Emporio line.

Last season he successfully eschewed his overstyled catwalk presentations in favour of something simpler, lighter and more romantic. Yesterday we were back on track with the oversized head gear, fussy shirts and scarves and frou-frou detailing that is so resolutely out of vogue.

While his navy trousers were cut rather beautifully -flattering and skimming the bottom, yet espousing a wide-legged loucheness -the proportions on some of his long jackets worn over long, beaded skirts were less promising. Some of his strapless evening gowns were made up of exquisitely intricate beading, but he managed to ruin the effect with wide-brimmed hats of gargantuan radius.

The 72-year-old designer, who has built up a billion-dollar empire creating staples for the working woman's wardrobe, once said that his clothes should walk off the catwalk and into the real world. Well, who knows how many women would be able to do that?