Simply Abu Dhabi XI

T he omnipresent model of the moment Cara Delevigne walked the walk for Dsquared2 this season and that is a testament to the label’s kudos. Dean and Dan Caten have steadily built a cult following and reliable collections. The twin brothers from Ontario Canada, the youngest of nine children, honed their skills at fashion giants Gianni Versace and Diesel before committing to their own house. Since then Britney Spears, Madonna, Justin Timberlake, Ricky Martin, Nicholas Cage and Lenny Kravitz have all been spotted sporting their clothes. They’re known for showmanship; in 2005 Christina Aguilera stripped male models of their clothes. In 2007 Rihanna walked the runway on their behalf. “Fashion is about personas; it's all about dressing up and projecting an identity,” says Dean Caten. “What's most important about what you wear is how it makes you feel.” Autumn/Winter is – theatrically – about all that jazz. 1940s Paris clashing with New Orleans jazz clubs and dressed into couture. Think big, think bright, think BugsyMalone. Tuxedoes. Hats. Cigars. But much, much hipper and even more smouldering. It was unleashed to the world in a catwalk show headed by swaggering, sinuous ‘dames-masculines’ – masculine ladies – models designed to evoke and reinvent the Jazz Age. They’re not the only ones. The 40s look, in all its double-breasted and tweed finery, is very much in vogue this season. Nostalgia is the toast of the day. But these heavy, post-war, masculine undercurrents are offset with decadently flowing silk gowns with dangerously skimming necklines and spaghetti straps. They want only for a cigarette holder, husky voice and smoky jazz club. It’s girl meets boy. Gangster teamed with glamour. Many of the ‘dames masculines’ seemed to have borrowed their boyfriends’ wardrobes, draped as they were in puffed-up bowler hats, manly tailoring, low-slung trousers that rest purposefully off the hip, bow ties and belted waists. A boyish ‘Jazz Pant’ boasts a marked waistband and wide leg extending decadently well below the shoe teamed with unlined Napoli Jackets, finely cut by a men’s tailor and shaped for a woman’s body. Fabrics have a masculine air: tweed, pinstripes and wool. Apart from the occasional electric primary – greens and purples – the colours are muted; pink blushes, lichen greens, dark sages, hazy lavenders and mushroom taupes set the tone. Hardwearing cloths are made luxurious with edging that threads through the collection. Touches of tortoise-shell, detachable broaches, glittering accessories and girly bows add glamour to the daywear collection. Bags are in a simple Port Perry design with curved lines and luxe fabrics. Crumpled socks and nylons leading into chunky heeled dance shoes carry theMalone theme. Hats are a mix of retro Americana and Parisian from the early 1900s, taking the shape of a huge fedora and a set of berets created from feathers and felt. Hints of silk and lace camisoles as undergarments soften the hard tailoring. Evening was more femme fatale with floor-skimming wispy gowns in lavender shades embellished with jewels and covered suggestively with fur stoles at the shoulder or lounge robes belted at the waist. One bias-cut dress has an enormous fish-tail and dipped back. It reminds us of the bottle green wonder that Keira Knightley wore in the movie ‘Atonement’. Another features billowing bolts of black velvet. They are exquisite. We challenge any woman not to covet one. Frothy lace and a mist of ostrich are jewelled with a dew of diamante raindrops and silk ripples like a brook. It’s lavish, alluring and utterly desirable. At Dsquared2 masculinity and femininity are clashing in a way that Venus and Mars could never have dreamed of. And it’s magnificent. Dean and Dan Caten 1 8 4 S I M P LY A B U DH A B I