Chloé: A plethora of paisleys

Somehow in just four seasons under the guidance of Natacha Ramsay-Levi, the house of Chloé has become the most Parisian of all fashion brands.

Ramsay-Levi´s collections just reek of Paris style, as many people understand it. A blend of polished rebellion, easy grace and refined sensuality. For spring 2019, Ramsay-Levi wants to see young ladies in hyper-dense patchwork silk prints that include everything from sunsets, orchids and water lilies to a plethora of paisleys.

Ramsay´s invitation featured a drawing of a woman holding her hands up high together in the sign of love. The box was made of Perspex; the matches were pink. How French that the image was on a box of matches, in the European country where women smoke the most. The same gesture was used in series of sunset-hued T-shirts, capturing the self-assuredly romantic mood of this collection.

It was a collection with a lot going on, possibly too much. Ramsay cut great floor-length plissé dresses; sleek shocking print tops and barely-there halter neck cocktails. They all looked bold and very cool, if a little overloaded. Many models had at least 10 accessories: mini Christmas tree earrings, bicep bands, necklaces, bracelets, ankle bracelets, double alpine belts. One imagines the house is doing a roaring trade in these objects, but it did clutter up the message.

For her finale Natacha referenced Ancient Greece with some excellent tunics, cut short and sassy, and accompanied by Roman sandals with brass warrior moldings. Climaxing a display in self-confident style, underlined by the final music, the great reggae anthem, Bam Bam by Sister Nancy, whose Jamaican lyrics proudly proclaim the right for women to be ambitious:

A me seh one ting Nancy cyan´understand
Wah mek dem a talk bout me ambition
Caah me seh a dem a ask weh me get it from
A true dem nuh know it´s from creation

Chloé: A plethora of paisleys

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