Allied Press Magazine Logo
03 magazine logo

Fashion is a home brand

28 May 2021
Category:

While you wouldn’t want to assume that those who can design a perfectly fitted garment could fit out a living room with ease, there are many that can. Turns out, in case you weren’t watching, some of the biggest names in fashion, dabble, very well, in the world of home design.
Words Kate Preece

Even some of the biggest names in fashion are not replete with apparel alone. Neither are some small designers, to be fair. And I suppose it makes sense when you imagine what sort of brains are at work behind those catwalk look that stir up murmurs of complimentary architectural lines, perfectly mismatched materials and colour combinations worthy of much more than one statement alone. So, we went looking for a few of our own matching sets, discovering the 58th annual Milan Furniture Fair to be a great gauge on just how well these fashion names are doing in the homewares world.

Dior Maison

Christian Dior studied architecture. He never overlooked the connection between interiors and fashion, which itself prompted him to employ two decorators, Victor Grandpierre and Georges Geffroy, to design his Parisian home and headquarters. From here the ‘New Look’ was revealed in 1947, as was a new type of fashion show (as ordained by then Vogue fashion editor Bettina Ballard).

Not to be confused with Maison Christian Dior – the luxury fragrance line with candles, soaps and a scarf line (for perfuming purposes) formerly known as La Collection Privee, displayed at the Maison Christian Dior apartment in the heart of Paris, Dior Maison relates to an in-house brand launched in 2016. The first collection saw 11 designers contribute such items as hand-embroidered linens, hand-blown glass carafes and Dior-printed playing cards, but this is not a brand likely to rest on its lapels.

At this year’s Milan Furniture Fair, Dior Maison joint forces with Dimore Studio, an Italian-American duo based in Milan and known for a particularly luxurious aesthetic. Sounds like a match made and heaven, and the resulting vases and candelabra, frames and umbrella stand are most worthy of their special order status and one year only in production.

Gucci Decor

You know this one. We’ve featured the creative flair that is the result this two-years-young fashion baby many a time. It perfectly highlights what happens when an Italian fashion house answers the question of how to add class and colour in one swish movement. It’s all about candles, cushions and chairs, with folding tables and even wallpaper to make your room oh-so fashionable. Go for the Tiger Face print wallpaper or folding table and you’ll be fierce day in and day out.

Versace Home

Another goodie. With absolutely nothing subtle about its approach to meal time, Versace invites Medusa into your house, emblazoned in gold across porcelain plates or else lets you go for baroque on your salt shaker. Never feel you need leave the Versace touch on the table however, as the range even extends to a kettle ball and set of dumbbells complete with that tell-tale Medusa head.

This year’s furniture show was the platform on which to debut the 2019 collection, which boasts Versace Home’s first outdoor items. Find a hanging bed, sun bed, lanterns, fire pit table, water-resistant chairs and a glass cube – ideal for resting one’s champagne glass on. It’s all about pop culture and mythology, which basically means you get in-your-face colours bound to create an anything-goes ambience.

Dolce & Gabbana x SMEG

What better way to ramp up style points in the kitchen than to bring in a touch of Dolce & Gabbana. For the fourth consecutive year, the fashion icon teamed up with SMEG to create unforgettable fridges – and more, for a vibrant display at the Milan Furniture Fair. What started with 100 hand-painted fridges has moved on to bring us kettles, juicers, blenders, coffee machines and toasters that ooze artisanal charm and are potently laced with pops of colour. Just look at the ‘Sicily in my Love’ range to understand how a splash of southern Italy, complete with Sicilian cart motifs, could radically change your kitchen vibe.

Armani/Casa

With a name that speaks proudly of sleek lines, sophistication and heady scents, Armani hasn’t shied away from turning its hands to interior design. For the past 19 years, Armani/Casa has been producing items for every room of the house, and it all started with a lamp Giorgio Armani designed in 1982.

From the Logo lamp came the first store in 2000, but four years on, it was time to add an interior design studio to satisfy clients who just couldn’t get enough of that Armani touch – one that is all about subtle luxury, achieved through meticulous detail, fine materials and nothing positioned without a purpose.

The new collection was revealed in Milan, where, once again, the brand’s Oriental influences were seen in motifs and patterns throughout textile, accessory and tableware items. Light blue, blue, red and pale gold formed the palette, with the design dialogue including clean, contemporary and exotic. Whether it’s a rug, the woven leather Onda chaise lounge or a set of playing cards (for a game of memory), if the bank balance allowed, we can certainly see how Giorgio’s promised sense of well-being could be achieve when surrounded by such items.

linkedin facebook pinterest youtube rss twitter instagram facebook-blank rss-blank linkedin-blank pinterest youtube twitter instagram