Whoever said the 90's are the new 80's certainly didn't read their trend crystal ball just right. As Stefano and Domenico proved with their D&G show, the 1980's, dayglo, printed leggings, sequins galore and kitschy plastic charm jewelery are far from taking a back seat to their subsequent minimalist sister of a decade. Madonna's "Vogue" provided the appropriate soundtrack as models in herds of alternating androgynous and ultra-feminine looks charged the runway set against a backdrop of what can best be described as alphabet soup. 


Body con dresses and bodysuits in flashy hot pinks, dayglo orange, highlighter yellow or black and white were splayed with textual graphic prints a la Stephen Sprouse (but being Italian, of course, Stefano and Domenico opted for cleaner, more legible typeface rather than hand-scrawl). Printed lurex leggings were layered under printed chiffon dresses for a fun and funky trompe l'oeil effect. 


As androgyny is a fast emerging trend for Fall 2011, D&G mixed up alternating looks of boyish slouch (boyfriend jackets bundled onto models with short crops and a bit of a masculine swagger) with an assortment of the diffusion label's signature chiffon peasant dresses, ultra feminine and flowing, for the girly girls amongst us. Footwear consisted of bright colored bowling-shoe-style wedges and chunky plastic letter charm necklaces and bracelets. 


All in all, the collection was a fun, upbeat and young, all the things that the diffusion label ought to be and a welcome respite from the heavily black and darkly paletted collections we've been seeing since NYFW kickoff.