As quickly as London Fashion Week came around, suddenly it was over – before you continue, catch up on all that went down. So, the fashion pack moved on to Milan as the AW24 season continued, with the latest edition whizzing through last week and across the weekend. 

Sabato de Sarno returned to present his sophomore womenswear collection for Gucci, while city stalwarts Miuccia Prada and Raf Simons reconfigured the past. Elsewhere, Matthieu Blazy stripped back the excess at Bottega Veneta, Ferragamo’s neo-flappers served speakeasy chic, and Marni gave moodboards the boot. Meanwhile, at a chaotic AVAVAV show, the audience threw actual trash onto the runway. 

Below, we round up everything else you might’ve missed, from Diesel and Etro, to Versace and Jil Sander. 

DIESEL’S SCORCHED EARTH CREATIONS

A couple of weeks out from its AW24 offering, Diesel announced it would live stream runway prep in its entirety. From the model casting to the ateliers and final adjustments, everything would be captured on CCTV and beamed from the brand’s website, 24 hours a day, for three whole days. The label also invited hundreds of members of the public to “interactively participate” in the show, and when the big day arrived this took the form of towering screens that dwarfed the catwalk, each one filled with boxes of guests like a hyper-charged Zoom call.

From the backstage cameras to this supersized video chat, this season we got the distinct impression that we were being watched, and Glenn Martens revealed backstage that it was all in aid of keeping things transparent. This theme spilled onto the runway, where vests, trousers, jeans and shirts all came with sheer threadbare sections, as if they’d been worn to death and would break apart in the next wash. A print featuring the cuboid repetitions of that group Zoom call adorned a tank top, skirt, but it was Martens’ scorched earth creations that made the biggest impact.

Midway through the show, a number of looks emerged as if they’d been ambushed with a blow torch. A faux-leopard coat was singed at the bottom to reveal a floral lining underneath; a trio of wrap-dresses came equally burnt, and VTSS appeared wearing her own scorched earth version. The brand revealed that to make the items “muslin is bonded to jersey then burnt out, exposing the contrast between the top layer and underneath,” and the same is done with the faux-fur. It’s the kind of technical innovation we’re used to seeing from Martens, and was the standout of an unsurprisingly stellar collection.

MK.GEE’S JIL SANDER GUEST SPOT

This season, Jil Sander was all about softness and envelopment. In their show notes, husband and wife design duo Luke and Lucie Meier described AW24 as “an immersive capsule, smooth and embracing.” On the runway, this translated to rounded shoulders of felted wool, quilted capes in cobalt and snow, and knee-length coats of shredded fringe. Soft textures and bevelled edges reigned supreme, with bags that resembled wigs, coats that were covered in padded tubes, and nearly every model’s head coming in round, protective casing.

It makes sense then, that the Meiers would choose a live performance to soundtrack this show, an attempt to encase guests further, but this time in music. The showspace reflected this too, with huge sculptural speakers resting on the plush green carpet, and in the midst of it all was Mk.gee (pronounced McGee), guitar in hand and hair shrouding his face. As Mariacarla Boscono opened in a sloping crimson suit, the musician played tracks from his newly released debut album Two Star & The Dream Police, their liquid riffs gliding throughout the room. As “How Many Miles” fell into “Alesis”, Mk.gee’s distinctive sound was a comfort to hear, the perfect addition to a collection themed around solace. This season, it seems that the Meiers’ taste was most accurately expressed through their guest selection, because, like their notes said, “music gives shape to our emotions, desires and needs.”

MM6 JUST WANTS TO HIT THE HAY

At MM6 Maison Margiela, models looked as if they’d been sent onto the catwalk in nothing but a pillowcase. This was, in fact, because models had been sent onto the catwalk in nothing but a pillowcase, or more accurately a high-fashion rendering of one. “Abstraction, this season, is front and centre,” said the show notes, “as a pillowcase that becomes a top, the print an exact replica of the one found on pillows in the hotel where the MM6 team usually stays during their trips.”

In the same way, bags that looked like cushions were clutched under arms, the pillow case print popped up again, and loads of models even had those doughnut pillows you get on a long-haul flight strung around their neck. Clearly the MM6 design team are in need of a kip. Elsewhere, this sleep theme emerged in satin slips and quilted coats, while a crimson bodysuit you might see on a pop star arrived at the other end of the spectrum. Palette-wise, blacks, browns and tans dominated the majority of the clothes – on sharp suiting, leather leggings and one sweeping, sleeveless overcoat – but this was offset by flashes of colour in gold leggings and iridescent, paint flecked suits.

RAVE REVIEW HAUNTS MILAN

Rave Review is the Stockholm-based “high-end remake” brand that crafts clothing from deadstock materials. All things considered, it’s a pretty straight-forward concept, which is probably why the brand decided to go with a very intellectual concept for AW24. This season, designers Josephine Bergqvist and Livia Schük mined the work of Mark Fisher, specifically his writing on hauntology, for a collection called – you guessed it – Hauntology.

A portmanteau of ‘haunting’ and ‘ontology’, the concept is about returning elements of the past that pervade modern culture – but how does this translate to patchwork clothing? Well, as the designers said in an interview before the show, they see it as “bringing old things together… but making them into something new, but which will always be haunted by the past.” Cue Argyle offcuts smashed with leopard print and check, various tartans draped into dresses, and flowery lace spliced with satin and stripes. Elsewhere, overcoats are constructed in outsize checks, voluminous leather belted at the waist, and mottled faux-fur crafted into a hoodie.

NIGHT FALLS AT ETRO

Etro, a brand known for its kaleidoscopic prints, is having a bit of a rebirth under Marco De Vincenzo. The label’s first designer to hail from outside the family clan, De Vincenzo arrived for SS23, replacing both Veronica and Kean Etro, respective heads of the woman and man lines. Now, both are in De Vincenzo’s control, and this season he presented a co-ed offering that delved into much darker territory than before. Even in fall seasons, Etro has historically kept things light, but for AW24, overcoats were rendered in velvet brown, while greys and burgundys subsumed most of the palette.

Elsewhere, silk shirts were unbuttoned to the navel, evening gowns slashed to the thigh, and even those famous paisley prints came in muted colourways, far less cornea-shattering than before. While the colours were toned down, you couldn’t exactly describe the collection as quiet, with the actual prints abundant as ever. That was, until, a selection of predominantly black looks closed the show, surely a first for this prismatic brand. It seems that, in allowing night to fall, Marco De Vincenzo has cast Etro in more vivid light than ever before.

VERSACE PUNKED MFW

Versace’s AW24 collection came with a warning. “This collection has a rebel attitude and a kind heart. The woman is a good girl with a wild soul. She is prim but sexy,” read the show notes. “Don’t mess with her!” After ascending a giant staircase, Donatella’s punk princesses prowled the black carpeted runway, eyes smudged with black kohl, hair electrified. 

Leaning into the punk aesthetic, the collection prominently featured a red tweed, developed by the Italian house for AW24 as well as holey knits, leather boots and gloves, and a smattering of leopard that winked at the mob wife aesthetic that’s taken over TikTok. 

This season’s woman brought her boyfriend along too, described as “a shy genius”, following her in tow in matching looks. Closing the collection, an about-turn into eveningwear – with hand-draped metal mesh and sparkling tweed this lady’s choice once the sun goes down. 

BRITAIN CONQUERED THE ROMANS AT FENDI

“I was looking at 1984 in the archives. The sketches reminded me of London during that period: the Blitz Kids, the New Romantics, the adoption of workwear, aristocratic style, Japanese style,” shared Kim Jones in the notes at Fendi’s AW24 show. Centuries after the Romans came to the UK, the artistic director of couture and womenswear decided it was time to offer something back. 

Inspired by the ease of London dressing and the freedom of Rome, the collection was distinctly utilitarian, while retaining the duality of its sources. Soft and strong, mauve and earthy tones made up the colour palette, while tweeds and knits were contrasted with sheer embroidered chiffon. What would a Fendi collection be without an assortment of bags – with this season introducing new versions of the Baguette and Peekaboo and brand-new styles, the Simply Fendi satchel and Roll shopper. Elsewhere, a cute collaboration with Chupa Chups answers the question: ‘Where should I put this lollipop?’ offering embellished holders to attach to your bags. 

JIMMY CHOO STEPPED INTO THE ART WORLD

The “paradoxical style of the 1990s” was the starting point for Jimmy Choo’s AW24 collection, Glamour Refined, revisiting the aesthetic of the time and modernising it for the contemporary sheaux-loving woman. Fusing the spirit of London and the soul of New York, the presentation’s space nodded to Chelsea galleries on both sides of the Atlantic, with the collection’s accessories displayed on plinths like works of art and portraits of them hung on the walls. Meanwhile, the collection itself played with the concept of contrasts – minimalism vs maximalism, day vs night, relaxed vs glamour. Whether you’re a pointy lace-up kitten heel kinda girl – offered in red and white colourways, as well as an ankle boot version – or a sturdy lug sole boot with polished bronze detailing is more your vibe, this season’s offering has something for everyone.

DOLCE’S WOMAN RAIDED HER BOYFRIEND’S CLOSET

Seemingly a late Valentine’s Day gift, for AW24, the Dolce & Gabbana woman was dressed for a sexy night with her lover. Doing exactly what it said on the tin, Tuxedo was a collection full of, well, tuxedos. Smashing together masculine and feminine styles and silhouettes, classic men’s tailoring was sexxxed up – appearing trouserless in favour of sheer tights and fuck-me pumps or shirtless with lacy lingerie that left little to the imagination. Elsewhere, gold accents nodded to the golden strip that models pummelled, while more demure looks covered up models in shaggy fur coats and a frisson of feathers, likely to end up on the bedroom floor at the end of the night. Closing the show, Naomi Campbell seemingly assumed the role of D&G Madam in a lace set adorned with coquettish bows, paired with gloves, veil, and hat. Her name is Dita and she will be your Mistress tonight.

MSGM STOPPED BY NYC

Upon entering MSGM’s AW24 show, guests were offered an aperitif alongside glasses of champagne and petit fours. Setting the mood, creative director Massimo Giorgetti teased what was to come, treating them like Fifth Avenue socialites. Throwing back to the 50s, the show imagined a screenplay ghost written by Truman Capote. “The author's taste for sophisticated atmospheres, singular people, places of pleasure and culture is matched by MSGM's obsession with urban haunts – bars and restaurants – where energies meet and the city comes alive,” read the show notes. 

As models paraded through the set’s various rooms, discordant sounds of clattering plates and Klaus Nomi’s alienesque voice created a soundscape that alluded to these socialites being anything but straightforward. Among sparkling shifts and prim polka dots, off-kilter looks like knitted pom-pom panties and fuzzy yeti trousers appeared and the brushstrokes of Belgian artist Jan De Vliegher became a print. “The past is reinterpreted and distorted,” the show notes postured, making sense of it all. “Garments almost borrowed from the parents' wardrobe just to be twisted into new looks.” 

FIORUCCI TOLD A LOVE STORY

Paying homage to foto-romanzo – a photographic format of capturing love stories in Italy during WWII – Fiorucci created its own love story for its AW24 lookbook. Entitled Caramelle da uno sconosciuto (Sweets from a stranger), the tale slowly unfolds in each image with various characters (and a cute dog!) donning the brand’s latest collection – designed by creative director Francesca Murri. Sticking with the sweet theme, the collection comprised striped matching sets like bonbons, monochromatic candy apple red looks, and playful rhinestone lollipop earrings. Elsewhere, denim and cotton were peppered with metal studs and giant mallow-shaped bags came all sizes – big enough for a sexy weekend getaway, small enough for a wedding ring!