My Five - Bottega Veneta Spring 2013

A collection that was a little more feminine and flowery than the usual BV fair.  Which is not to say it wasn't very cool and chic, because it was.  Tomas Maier always uses the most interesting (and sophisticated) color palettes, this collection was full of saturated colors with a vintage feel to them, nothing jarring or blinding here.  Check out my picks:

Trend takeaways:
1.  Ladylike dresses
2.  Sophisticated embellishment
3.  Mix floral prints (try and keep them in the same color palette)

Images via Style.com

My Five - Bottega Veneta Resort 2013

A very nice, sleek collection with an almost muted color palette.  What I mean by "muted" is that the colors are strong, but they aren't in-your-face.  Lots of yellow, mint green, peach and a hit of purple along with the usual black.  What I find very interesting (from a design point of view) is that Tomas Maier begins his design process with color.  Interesting, because while I usually start with pattern and/or texture, a color palette really does set a "mood".  It creates a feeling and thus ideas about how things should look.  I love learning about other designers and their creative processes.  Anyway, here are my picks:

 Point to ponder - how do you feel about a tracksuit?  Are we ready for tracksuits again?

Images via Style.com

My Five - Bottega Veneta Fall 2012

Hope everyone had a great weekend!  I spent mine trying to get items together and labeled for the local kid's consignment sale (held twice a year).  There are a few in my area, but I usually consign and shop at the one at the church less than a mile from my house - talk about easy.  I'll have a post later in the week about these sales, in case you are curious. 

Anyway, let's start the week off with a beautifully tailored collection from Bottega Veneta.  Here's what caught my eye:

Images via Vogue.com

 Some lovely accessories:

Images via Style.com

My Five - Bottega Veneta Spring 2012

Not an outstanding collection, but a solid one full of wearable, understated luxurious clothes.  Here are my picks:

 I wanna see this bag up close - it looks like clear plastic fading into leather?  I don't know, but I like!

This would be good inspiration for a quilt or the like:

Images via Vogue.com

My Five - Bottega Veneta Resort 2012

Oh, this is one lovely collection, great colors, great textures, great patterns.  And the accessories?  Stop it, so gorgeous!  Please forgive me because I absolutely couldn't pick just five.  Here are my faves, enjoy! 
(check out my picks from previous Bottega Veneta collections here, here, here, here, and here)

Images via Style.com

My Five - Bottega Veneta Fall 2011

Ladylike with an edge, that's how I would sum up this collection.  And lace/lace motifs are not going away anytime soon.  I love how there were a lot of "shadows" on the clothes, accomplished with dye and printing, etc.  Some things looked like they had been spray painted.  If you ever wonder how clothes can cost so much - check out the details in this collection.  Trust me the fabrics are not cheap and the construction is very technical and labor intensive (I did retain some information from my apparel schooling - ha!).  I may not be able to afford it, but I appreciate it!

 It's all in the details...

Woven with chunky, nubby yarn - which means it's got to be woven slower and with care (someone hovering around the loom).  Also means it's harder to sew - most likely there's a bit of knitted scrim attached to the back of the fabric to anchor it a bit - ?

Knit tunic and scarf with colored yarns/leather/whatever added in post production - by hand.

 Now for what Bottega Veneta is famous for - the bags.  Total and complete luxury, no logos needed.

Images via Style.com