Roberto Cavalli Spring 2012 RTW

Abbey Lee Kershaw

Abbey Lee Kershaw detail

Abbey Lee Kershaw detail

Abbey Lee Kershaw backstage

Kasia Strauss

Hanne Gaby Odiele

Hanne Gaby Odiele detail

Nimue Smit

Nimue Smit detail

Elsa Sylvan

Elsa Sylvan detail

Karlie Kloss

Karmen Pedaru

Kasia Strauss

Kasia Strauss detail

Izabel Goulart

Julia Nobis

Natasha Poly

Roberto Cavalli bag detail

Magdalena Frackowiak

Magdalena Frackowiak

Roberto Cavalli has produced a classic, elegant, relaxed and sexy (it always is) collection this spring which has marked a significant break from his previous collections. Tim Blanks at Style.com hits the nail on the head, "There was a time when the niche he'd carved for himself got so clogged with cliché that he was brinking on self-parody." Cavalli has brought himself back from the brink with this show and although his trademark animal prints, sheer fabric and metallic embellishments are still there, he has made them new again with such a unique design-centred vision. 

Looking at this collection, everything that went down the runway looks new again, even if, in different combinations or contexts, we have seen it before. That is one mark of a great show and collection. The sharp black strips of material that serve as a contrast to pink and pale yellow prints are just one of the many techniques that makes this collection an elegant and well-tailored one. 

Also, I must say, I am in love with everything that is metallic this season - it has been transformed from something traditionally trashy into contemporarily chic. Thank you Roberto for reinvigorating the (classic) fashion scene in Milan and striking a perfect balance. The mark of wearable and succesful RTW collection for me is, would a French woman wear it during the day? And for this one, I'd wager, YES.