‘Shiny, shiny, shiny boots of leather.’ The Velvet Underground’s Venus in Furs was on the soundtrack and Francisco Costa’s latest show was an ode to the material. This being Calvin Klein it was as sleek and glossy as they come and yes, there were some pretty shiny leather boots too. Black, second-skin tight and tall, they disappeared underneath the clothes adding the final touch to a very Sixties, and early Seventies, rock collection – as seen through the CK lens, of course.
A glimmering black haircalf coat, small at the shoulders with big round buttons and bigger cuffs, opened the show and others followed in chocolate brown and forest green, some patchworked together in horizontal strips, always stopping right above the knee. Blush and terracotta sheath dresses did the same, a contrasting black sequinned stripe running down the middle or across the waist, whereas another long-sleeved dress was belted low through a large metallic loop. Cashmere knit drop-waist dresses, with a bit of sparkle woven in, were pleated and raw-edged and teamed with short-heeled Mary Janes. As the show progressed the hemlines got either shorter, like a studded black and white leather dress or they nearly reached the floor, like a black metallic knit dress with a long keyhole at the bust and a frayed hem. Consider Venus very well covered indeed.
