Bottega Veneta s/s 2011 Milan

Tomas Maier’s S/S 2011 collection for Bottega Veneta immediately dove into a list of anomalies; a refreshing list of variations that women will be thankful for come spring 2011! The collection took a detour from the brimming panache the red carpet and casts like ‘Sex and the City’ exhibit onscreen; instead crowding the ramp with, ‘casual sophistication’, oozing a lightness that will become a requisite next year as the mercury climbs its course.

The collection is essentially the missing link between beachwear and prudent city wear for the summer. Borrowing from his vast experience in swimwear design, Maier effortlessly combines cotton, leather, jersey and silk with materials traditionally accustomed to swimwear, to offer a ‘multi-material’ silhouette. These profiles are then coupled with perforations, mesh and open weaves; the aggregate of which leaves us with garments that swathe a body, without starving it of air and comfort, in a palette featuring blue-blacks (a welcome anomaly!), milk, oak and titanium.

The emblematic bastions of any Bottega Veneta collection; the leather bags, remained true to the informal Bottega Veneta look for spring 2011. Cross body bags, shoulder bags, clutches and top handled pieces incorporated an amalgamation of multiple materials, offering, in the words of the designer, “imprecise shapes, finished with craftsmanship that has a naïve sensibility.”

Women! It is time to get off those high heels and to celebrate comfort; an essential, yet often forgotten element of fashion. Maier’s collection under the Bottega Veneta label has all the makings to guide you towards an effortless spring and summer.