Rome fashions set 'hot' pace
Italian designers are holding their own in an increasingly competitive fashion landscape. From established names like Giorgio Armani and Gianni Versace to Gucci and Prada, Italian designers have consistently produced collections that have kept the world fashion spotlight firmly focused on Rome.
Few European capitals can compete with Italy in the variety and quality of its locally produced materials. But the strength of Italian designers also lies in their trend-setting styles.
While French fashion is traditionally flamboyant and ranks highly in the glamour stakes, Italian design is typically more pared down, sparer and cleaner.
Italian-made fashions have a synergy all their own; the two most sought-after labels in today's high fashion marketplace are Italian.
Gucci and Prada, the established names, are undergoing a renaissance; in boutiques in Hong Kong, London, New York and Tokyo, there are constant waiting lists for new lines.
While the two houses are quite different in what they offer, they represent a return to simplicity and an adherence to minimalist lines - Gucci in slim, masculine-inspired pant-suits, velvet dresses and clingy jersey tunics and Prada in functional, spare ensembles which clearly attempt to make a strong anti-fashion statement.
In the meantime, classic houses are undergoing a revolution of their own.
Where Florence-based Salvatore Ferragamo used to be known primarily for its neat, low-heeled shoes for the mature, sophisticated set, the label's ready-to-wear designers are now dressing a breed of younger, more daring shoppers in clipped, silky cashmere twin-sets, slim pants and trademark silk scarves.
It is much the same at the house of Trussardi, which is enjoying an upswing in popularity.
Leather accessories have long been the company's signature product but the same material is now cut into avant-garde shapes.
Whatever their fashion philosophy, Italian designers create business empires and many have branched into accessories like houseware - even bath products.
In the case of Giorgio Armani - whose name now adorns clear bottles of rich, scented bath oil - image is everything. The designer, called the master of cool for his refined clothes, represents the unfettered elegance of the 1990s and personifies the pure style of this era.
His off-the-hanger clothes have a made-to-measure feel about them, in jackets that fit close to the body over wide palazzo pants, or dresses that caress the curves and swish gently across the ankles.
Gianfranco Ferre, whose designs for the French house of Christian Dior are decidedly extravagant and the ultimate in Parisian chic, adopts a more ascetic approach to his own label.
His women's suits, for example, are modelled on those he creates for men.
Even Gianni Versace, the maestro of eccentric colours, prints and motifs, has taken on a gentler, calmer fashion perspective in recent years.
The lively colours are still there but the lines are softer and less aggressive.
