Sometimes, after a long day, you just need a DSquared2 show. I want to say it’s because you know what you are getting, but I don’t quite mean that, because that sounds like I’m trying to say that the clothes are the same season on season (they aren’t) – it’s more that you are assured an all-out, unapologetic serving of Dean and Dan in runway form. It’s this impressive way that they can take anything, literally – watersports, camping, Victorians, sleeping bags, 90s grunge, dirndl skirts, Christina Aguilera — and make them sexy. Which kind of points to the fact that the Caten twins tend to run with a theme, but this time they defied their own convention and showed a collection with no discernible theme at all. At least to my untrained eye. Now – that may sound like I’m being negative – but it’s quite the opposite – it gave the boys free reign to run through basically whatever they wanted, which made for quite a brilliant spectacle.
Beginning with – I want to say surfer meets rockabilly – as in, Hawaiian print shirts (one, two, three, fours a trend) worn with slick leopard print trousers that buckled up the sides, Mapplethorpe-esque leather, hats, buckled neckerchiefs. There was a bit of froufy tulle thrown in at this point for the ladies (the second time they’ve walked with the boys). Then we had a a bit of a leather moment – pants, natch, but also leather sleeves on Dsquared2 sweaters, these great buckled shoes that the twins wore to take their bows. And then, as if they needed an excuse – boy scout. Here, the shirt, covered in patches, was used as a base – for girls worn under cocktail gowns or tucked into balloons of tulle, for boys worn with surfer-print bermuda shorts that sat over slick leather trousers. And finally (phewf) we went a bit prom date with pastel suiting (mint green, ruffles etc. etc.) which rounded out a show that we are calling Dean and Dan in a blender with the lid off. Which is a really quite fabulous thought.
Photographs by Jason Lloyd-Evans
