Sandro - Spring/Summer 2011

Next summer, the Sandro girl will be putting aside her trendy bohemian airs in favor of more minimalist, girly trimmings that will suit her perfectly. In step with the times and exuding efficient simplicity, Evelyne Chétrite's summer season wardrobe seems to have what it takes to win over her audience.

After letting themselves be guided by Nicolas Ghesquière as Isabel Marant, the Sandro designers are now following the general trend towards the new minimalist religion established by Hannah MacGibbon and Phoebe Philo. However, the Sandro (recently purchased by LVMH) collection is not full of simple catwalk cut-and-paste pieces - trendy it is, but not enough to be accused of plagiarism.

All the fashionable colors are present (e.g., beige and pink monochromes, as well as a good dose of white and a few touches of black vinyl), but they will be part of a wardrobe that will mix different influences without letting any one take over completely.

Sandro's collection will not revolutionize fashion, nor bring new blood to existing trends. This would be counter-productive to the company, given that the urbanites infatuated with the Frédéric Biousse labels are not wanting to be avante-garde, but are looking for pieces that remind them of those seen during fashion week.

They will surely appreciate the diverse silhouettes full of masterful girliness, e.g., camel leather with an ivory blouse, a sensible mini dress with a cowboy bowtie à la Givenchy 2008, a Peter Pan collared shirt in black with an oh-so Miu Miu 2010 flamingo pink printed skirt, or a pair of Barbie pink shorts with a raspberry blazer.

And then there are the references to the Dolce&Gabbana duo, whose lace theme appeared on a long carbon black dress as well as on several trousseau-esque blouses. The denim shirt will still be there, and may steal the spotlight from the French striped marinière.

(The only negative: stealing the removable Peter Pan collar from Carven just when the house is trying to make its comeback... not very fair-play...)

The camel diehards will also find satisfaction at Sandro, and the others will always be able to fall back on the up-to-date light pink/raspberry pink color association.

P.S. be careful of copying the looks taken directly from last summer's Miu Miu collection - they run the risk of smelling a bit dated.