Marni wins praise for Milan fashion collection

MILAN - Italy - Italian label Marni won quick praise on Sunday for a modernist collection that featured opulent coloured fur coats, feather-fronted skirts and bright zip-front jackets on the fifth day of Milan Fashion Week.

Trade journal Women's Wear Daily called it "a fashion extravaganza as audacious as it was beautiful".

Jessica Michault, editor-in-chief of Nowfashion.com, tweeted it was "one of the strongest" of the season.

Marni creative director Consuelo Castiglioni's autumn/winter 2014-2015 collection included several oversize and boxy, geometric designs that have proved something of a running theme during fashion week.

The wide trousers, belts and tunics gave the whole an Oriental feel, while there was also an element of "sports chic" in some of the more youthful numbers.

Missoni was another strong favourite, with its signature knitwear side by side with cashmere, mohair and tweed while the warm colours like chocolate and caramel were combined with oranges and turquoises.

Missoni said its collection aimed to convey an image of a "free spirited woman" and "dynamic protagonist of city life" who can blend "fashion with street style, informality and the utmost sophistication".

Salvatore Ferragamo's Massimiliano Giornetti also offered an amalgam of textures, experimental fabrics and colours -- where generally sombre shades were livened up by gold and copper threads.

The collection, which was attended by US actress Hilary Swank, was also the debut for the new "Fiamma" handbag line, which features a semi-circular top handle and was shown off in a variety of exotic materials.

Gaia Trussardi, the fourth generation of the eponymous brand, rounded off the day with a collection inspired by French New Wave cinema that offered a muted palette of greys, blacks and browns and emphasised comfort and "eccentricity".