‘I always feel pain when I see women who don’t look comfortable in their clothes,’ says Creative Director Ian Griffiths CREDIT

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Edited by| Juls Mcmahon

Life & Style section - CJ journalist

Milan, Italy - 23- Feb, - 2023

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We’ve all had one. Or most of us have – the dawning realization that the practical, pragmatic, rational wardrobe you’ve carefully honed over several years has tipped into safe, or worse still, bland.

That’s why keeping an eye on the catwalks can be useful, provided you find the designers who more or less chime with your own taste (some emphasis here on the less – you don’t want to find yourself in an arid echo chamber), you should find enough inspiration each season to keep you comfortably out of a rut.

For many women, Max Mara is one of those shows. Anyone who knows anything about contemporary fashion knows what it stands for: camel, coats, classics. Not much to dislike there. But also, potentially, not much to get excited about.

Ian Griffiths, Max Mara’s British creative director for the past 35 years, isn’t one to introduce radical upsets in an attempt to connect with the TikTok brigade. But in his mild-mannered, erudite way, he likes to challenge the status quo.

This season, he delved into the 18th century – ground well-trodden by Vivienne Westwood and Karl Lagerfeld, although with very different intent and results. For Griffiths, it wasn’t heaving bosoms and massive skirts that were the draw, so much as the swashbuckler.

The new Max Mara coat, for instance, is long and unstructured, like an 18th-century Banyan coat. Also known as dressing-gown coats, these are soft, glide-y affairs that were inspired in their day by kimonos. They fold around the body beautifully and work as well over jeans as a pencil skirt. Max Mara’s cashmere is always delectable, but I especially liked the way he retooled the Banyan coat into a modern quilted duvet coat.

Then there’s the brocade he worked into trousers and jackets, which were styled with suede cummerbunds and stumpy boots. “I’m all for function and logic,” says Griffiths

“I always feel pain when I see women who don’t look comfortable in their clothes or look afraid to move too quickly in case something falls down, but there’s always room for some bold gestures and imagination.”

Was he talking about the influencers with whom, in the past three years, Max Mara has worked closely, seeding them head-to-toe outfits to wear for their social media platforms?

Probably not, although as usual, they arrived at the show at the last minute, flapping down the catwalks towards their front-row seats, boyfriends trailing behind them with phone cameras dutifully trained.

Shoulder-robing and lip-pouting, heavily made-up with fake-tanned midriffs on the show - on the one hand, they seem to embody everything Max Mara doesn’t. On the other, they demonstrate its broad appeal.

Once you get out of the mindset of categorizing fabrics as “daytime” or “evening”, you’ll get much more wear and fun out of your wardrobe. You can always tone things down – or raise the ante with contrasting accessories.

Whether it’s adding a waistcoat or “corset” top, or slipping into an extra long (or short) length, proportions and controlled layers can make all the difference between a look that’s interesting or forgettable.

Dressing-gown coats are all the rage for next winter, but if you prefer more structure, Max Mara’s redingotes will never go out of style.

Cozy knits are another key trend for 2023. Baring some skin, particularly shoulders, stops them from looking too casual or utilitarian. A good option for evenings, especially a knit that has some metallic glimmer to it.