M Missoni (Q3242)
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M Missoni is a fashion house from FMD.
| Language | Label | Description | Also known as |
|---|---|---|---|
| English | M Missoni |
M Missoni is a fashion house from FMD. |
Statements
It’s a new day at M Missoni. For years, this lower-priced line operated as a license, related to the Missoni clan more in name than in deed. Now it’s back in the family, and Margherita Missoni—daughter of Angela, who designs the main line, and granddaughter of Rosita, who’s in charge of the home collection—is its creative director. The project was a long time in development (Margherita was appointed last October), so a low-key launch was not what she had in mind.Picking up on the trend of fashion experiences, she booked a sidewalk café; hired hip-hop dancers; stocked a newsstand with branded M Missoni T-shirts, scarves, and macramé iPhone pouches; and took us all on a tram ride around the center of Milan. At each stop, more M Missoni–clad models hopped on. It was an eclectic bunch, 70-some people of all ages, colors, and sizes cast from the street, along with friends of the family, such as Bianca Brandolini d’Adda, Elisa Sednaoui, and Jessica Hart. By the end of the ride, it was a regular M Missoni clown car, stuffed to bursting with an energetic, playful mix of space-dye, tie-dye, the famous house zigzag pattern, and a surprising amount of prints.Margherita said her project started with research: “I discovered in this process how much bigger Missoni once was. I wanted to give new life to discarded parts of the house heritage.” In some cases, she meant that quite literally. She used yarn from the stockpiles left over from previous seasons for knitwear. Other pieces were fashioned from fabrics originally made from the company’s home collection. A black-and-white print that looked not unlike Keith Haring’s iconic scribbles was drawn by her late grandfather Tai.What distinguished it all from the main collection—and what will make it successful—was its everyday-ness. These weren’t empty runway gestures. Margherita came across a comment her grandfather once made—“In the future, everyone will wear a tracksuit”—and kept it in mind while developing the pieces, but there was much more on offer besides tie-dyed sweaters and logo track pants. The magic was in the mix: a sequined tank dress over a striped ribbed sweater, a windowpane blazer worn with Lurex-shot crocheted pants, a mixed-floral midi skirt topped by a shrunken knit cropped well above the navel. The collection will be available in sizes XS to XXL, meaning that men will be able to fit into it if they want to.
From that decision to the circularity angle, Margherita made a big impression with this little-sister line relaunch.
19 September 2019
Fall 2019 marks the final M Missoni collection before Margherita Missoni takes the helm of her family’s diffusion label. It felt like a period of change and a stronger visual offering on the whole. Inspired by the North American woods, the design team delivered Fair Isle sweaters and mélange ribbed tops in a pleasing selection of pine greens and earthy pinks.The brow furrowed, however, at a description in the press notes of “Navajo motifs,” a questionable and unnecessary detail at best. In this day and age, any label hoping to find success on a global scale has to exercise great thought and care in its frames of reference. Here’s hoping Missoni brings that modernity on her arrival next season.
11 February 2019
Margherita Missoni’s first collection for M Missoni will arrive in Spring 2020, so until then, Angela Missoni will steer the ship through its transitional period. This season, she was struck by photographs of women in fishing towns (mainly across Asia) who layered technical diving gear with full skirts and dresses cut from traditional cloths.Thus there was a great deal of scuba and neoprene, mixed in with M Missoni’s signature knits. The contrast was interesting, if not always successful. What worked best were the woven items in pleasing black and tobacco hues, particularly the nubby marble-knit pencil skirt, and the simple long crocheted dresses, which are always a crowd-pleaser.
10 December 2018
Angela Missoni riffed off a simple beachgoer this season, a standard Resort-to-Spring motif for any contemporary line. That meant more crochet than usual—a welcome sight, crochet is trending this season—mixed in with lots of Lurex, which was a continuation from the ’70s-themed Resort offering.The reworked M Missoni hopes to deliver a full wardrobe for women, and so there was denim for the first time in recent memory: a cropped jacket and wide-leg pant set. Missoni also added a range of simpler separates in complementary tones, alongside the line’s flashier knits—a light blue and brown crochet tank with a solid-tone cotton skirt in the latter shade, for example. The intent is to help the label’s customer mix and match pieces more casually, for those too shy to try a head-to-toe chevron print. We’ll see how that shakes out on the sales floor.
13 September 2018
Resort marks a new beginning for M Missoni, which is rejoining the Missoni umbrella after several years of being licensed to Valentino. Angela Missoni has resumed her role as designer and is attempting to inject new energy into its wares. Disco served as the collection’s starting point; the glitz of Studio 54 and carefree nights spent dancing informed a lineup of bright, print-heavy separates designed to be mixed and matched. Styled with candy-color leggings and sporty striped sandals, the pieces looked less like Donna Summer and more like Bella Hadid, nodding to the Instagram generation’s penchant for splashy logos and social media–ready eclecticism.Hitting most of the key references—stretchy sequins that echoed the look of mirror balls, house standard zigzag stripes, gold lamé—Missoni delivered on the expected, but disco was about more than a series of visual cues. The energy, eroticism, and spirit of inclusivity were more or less missing. High points like flirty dresses covered in neon animal print and punchy knitwear covered in geometric shapes were perfectly nice, but given the richness of the source material, it would have been interesting to see something that moved further beyond the surface.
26 June 2018
The creative spirit of ’70s Harlem loosely inspired M Missoni for Fall 2018, and so the palette and prints were bold: Hot pink and orange leopard spots swirled across the label’s staple knit dresses and jacquard coats, and kitschy green and blue grids were worked onto woven separates. Chunky chenille coats grazed the ankles, and there were houndstooth and windowpane-checked pantsuits cut in a retro fashion.Some of the graphic prints were clearly Afrocentric, which always raises questions of appropriation. As Marc Jacobs did a year ago for his hip-hop–inspired collection, the brand was careful to pay credit to Harlem, but referencing its culture in a meaningful way requires thought and care. Here, it seemed to graze the surface in a way that may not have warranted the risk. Simply bright and beautiful colors would have been just as nice.
14 February 2018
Call it business as usual at M Missoni. This season, the Italian label began with an epigram from Homer’s “Odyssey” (“First you will come to the Sirens / who enchant all / who come near them”), setting the stage for a grand under-the-sea exploration. Yet despite the stated intention, the pieces themselves fell well within M Missoni’s established wheelhouse: the chevron knits and woven Lurex items that its customer desires.The Homeric theme did play out in a few notable ways. There were clamshells and mermaids racing across black knit tanks and canary yellow dresses, and a few pieces with fish scales traced across them in black thread; here, the execution felt a bit on the nose. Elsewhere it took more subtle form: crocheted waves zipping across tops, plus the strong presence of white. It was meant to resemble sea foam, and when rendered in a soft honeycomb weave, did result in a foamy texture. A new chain-strap pouch, knit with coral red thread and dangling fringe, stood out as a welcome pop of color and a simpler crowd-pleaser.
15 September 2017
“The heart of this project beats at a different tempo than those we’re used to in the fashion system,” said Margherita Missoni, presenting the pre-fall collection for M Missoni. She relaunched the family’s lower-priced line in September with a lively performance of street-casted models, hip-hop dancers, and friends on a tram ride across Milan, and fashion’s short-term memory and disposable production cycle isn’t something she is keen on bolstering. “There’s no time to treasure things and appreciate them—they are gone in a minute,” she said. “I’m definitely not making what I’m creating in this project to disappear after just one season.”To that end, the designer is putting sustainability at the core of her manifesto. The vast Missoni archives provide a goldmine of old yarns, fabrics, knitting patterns, and dead stocks that she is harvesting with gusto—upcycling, repurposing, and reworking them into new propositions. Looking at her own family’s past with fresh eyes, she’s giving a younger, cooler, easier spin to timeless wardrobe staples. In the mostly genderless collection, elongated or wrap-around cardigans were woven in zig-zag orfiammatopatterns, which she made simpler and “almost elemental,” as she explained; roomy high-waist pants in lurex were paired with sweats or jumpers emblazoned with archival knitted patches. Pretty little dresses and fluid pajamas were made out of patchworks from old printed silks; a bohemian tunic in black organic cotton crêpe was embroidered with multicolored ribbons, inspired from sketches of chromatic scales drawn by Margherita’s late grandfather Ottavio.When not upcycled from the house’s old supplies, fabrics were sourced only if organically grown; polyester is of certified recycled production. Rounding out the collection’s responsible and ethical approach, sneakers are made in Ethiopia, in a factory with minimum wages higher than average; knitwear will soon be produced in Peru; and pretty woven baskets are crafted in Ghana, with a part of its sales revenues given to OAfrica, a charity dear to Margherita that supports disadvantaged children in West Africa.Obviously this new production and sourcing system is rather challenging in a mercilessly commercial fashion world, which still works at crazy speed in waste-producing mode. Only limited quantities can be supplied from upcycled yarns and fabrics; small artisanal communities take longer to make their handcrafted items.
“But this makes things unique and special,” enthused Margherita, who is clearly upbeat and excited by the collection’s positive response received so far. And what about the Missoni clan? “They are all very proud of me. My grandmother Rosita wears one of the shirts from the collection all the time, which makes me very happy. I’m not designing only for 20-somethings, as I believe that being appropriate about age or gender is a very old-fashioned approach today.”
6 December 2019
There was no concrete reference point for M Missoni’s Pre-Fall wares. Instead, a more general exploration of cartoons, graffiti, and other graphics was on the table, all done with a slight ’70s vibe. The collection’s central print was an abstract intarsia with mystic undertones: evil eyes set beside erupting volcanoes in a psychedelic palette of turquoise, mandarin orange, and hot pink. Other bleeding hearts and falling stars recalled the occult imagery that has become a source of fascination for Maria Grazia Chiuri’s Dior, among others, and felt in tune with the modern New Age movement that’s trending these days.It worked as a series of colorful, covetable knits, and the ’70s shapes went particularly well with M Missoni’s signature stitchwork—that evil eye, for example, on a rugby-style sweater with a thick black collar, or an oversize pink polo with wide sleeves worn over a tight matching turtleneck. A boxy mustard yellow velvet suit was a fun departure, especially for a brand so closely associated with knitwear, and could represent a nice path forward for M Missoni next season.
14 December 2017
M Missoni’s pastel knits may look sticky-sweet from afar, but get a little closer, and you’ll find “MY RIGHTS” swirling among flowers and a few funny critters that could have been lifted fromWhere the Wild Things Are. Taken together, those hidden surprises underline M Missoni’s new rebellious, girl-power ethos—and the Missoni ethos as a whole. Earlier this year, the house made headlines with its feminist, brightly-colored Fall ’17 collection (including those famous pussy hats). It suggested that wearing vibrant, take-no-prisoners colors is just one way women can make themselves seen.When it comes to feminist fashion, many designers look to the ’70s, but that decade informs every M Missoni collection. Here, there were boxy power suits, breezy chiffon dresses, and retro jumpers mixed in with M’s classic knit dresses in kaleidoscopic “ribbon” jacquards. The best pieces may have been the intricate sweater coats; with fairytale drawings and “stay wild, child” woven into the jacquard, they looked unlike the other coats you’ll see this season—and who can resist a playful nod to childhood?
15 June 2017
It isn’t just the cool kids of Brooklyn and East London who are feeling inspired by eastern Europe right now. M Missoni’s design team is looking to the region, too—and we don’t mean Vetements-y hoodies and jeans. For Fall ’17, they were more interested in the naïf (or “naive”) paintings from Croatia and Slovakia circa the 20th century. For those who aren’t schooled in eastern European art, the naïf style refers to artists who weren’t born into nobility and who had minimal formal training.Ivan Generalic is one of the best-known artists from that era and was famous for his storybook-like landscapes. You won’t find any of those in M’s new collection, but the team did continue exploring last season’s slightly “off” colors, like mustard, olive, and chocolate brown. There were tapestry-inspired jacquards, too, as well as folkloric floral prints and some cute lace-up Swedish clogs.It goes without saying that there’s nothing naive about Missoni’s knitwear, whether it’s on the runway or in the M showroom. The pleated knit dresses here were a standout, updated with ribbons of alternating jacquard patterns and sweet ruffles at the shoulders.
8 March 2017
Remember when every collection looked like the newGucci? Luckily that “eclectic” craze is slowing down, but there’s been one lasting takeaway: Just do your thing and own it.M Missoni’snew collection is proof that sometimes it’s best not to overthink things. Instead of designing the collection around a specific, arbitrary theme—in recent seasons it’s been the ’80s, bowling, and the circus—the design team simply refreshed the house’s signatures in spring-y, saturated hues.If anything, there was a slight nod to the ’70s, when Missoni was at the top of its game. Shades of rust, mauve, and gold were color-blocked on simple knitted skirts and tanks as well as on groovier items like a slinky, ruffled knit dress. For lots of shoppers, those items will qualify as no-brainer basics—Missoni has a loyal clientele of women who prefer striped sweaters and Lurex dresses to plain white tees. But even the neutral-inclined would be hard-pressed to deny the ease of a rainbow-hued sweater dress or marbled pink-and-yellow knit skirt; on a hectic morning, they’d call for virtually no styling.
7 September 2016
Few cities breed nostalgia like New York, particularly in the ’80s. Remember when the Meatpacking District was actually for packing meat, locals might say, or when the East Village was downright gritty? Manhattan was grimier and more dangerous then, but artists, musicians, writers, and designers look back on it in a romantic, sentimental way.AtM Missoni, the design team was thinking about Blondie, Soho, and graffiti, but Resort was mostly about a bold, vibrant energy. The house’s signature knits were spun in eye-popping rave prints, and Lurex leggings and sweatshirts were reminiscent ofJane Fonda–era workout clothes. There was a bit of a mod touch in shift dresses, boxy jackets, and a plum sweater-coat with Marilyn Monroe’s visage in Benday dots. A few ’80s trademarks they could have skipped—namely a one-sleeved turtleneck, shoulder-padded romper, and jersey harem pants. In fashion, even more so than in life, we tend to view the past with rose-colored glasses.
24 May 2016
These days, it seems like every item could use a little Lurex. The glittery thread has been trending from high-end to high street in recent seasons, but it’s always been part of theM Missonivocabulary. For their Fall collection, the label’s designers turned their attention to London in the swinging ’60s and whipped up jacquard minidresses and tie-neck blouses shot through with—you guessed it!—Lurex. Plush wool coats in swirling psychedelic prints had a touch of shimmer, while other looks served up full-on, kaleidoscopic glitz. A floor-length shirtdress in a luminous, squiggly knit would make an unexpected wardrobe workhorse, but you couldn’t say the same for a shapeless metallic-teal skirtsuit. It would have been charming if the jacket had been a little more shrunken and the skirt a lot shorter.Some of the non-printed, not-Lurex pieces were memorable, too, like the natty cape-back coats, which were loosely inspired by photos of Queen Elizabeth II on vacation at Balmoral Castle. Who saysKate Middletonis the only trend-setting royal?
9 February 2016
Most designers looking to add a sporty spirit to their collections think along the lines of tennis, yoga, or horseback riding. Leave it to M Missoni to find inspiration in the least-likely sport of all: bowling. The theme came through most noticeably in the accessories, like miniature leather bowling bags and striped sneakers. There were even M Missoni bowling pins scattered throughout the Bryant Park showroom.As far as the clothes were concerned, the quirk was toned down a bit; For example, in lieu of the satin-finish polyester found on real bowling shirts, there were panels of metallic laminate and knits woven with sparkly Lurex. Sweater vests, socks, and polos were trimmed with sporty ribbing, and even the most directional pieces—like a sculpted copper dress—felt as easy as a T-shirt. You could sense a hint of a retro vibe, too; the designers were also thinking about American life in the ’60s and the charm of drive-in movies. On that note, the metallic pieces felt a touch space-age à laHow to Steal a Million, while the kicky miniskirts and plaid capes will be more familiar to shoppers. For a label known for color, the most unexpected pieces were the slick black faux-leather skirts and tops.
18 December 2015
The unrelenting pace of fashion can make it feel a bit like a circus, so why not channel that into a collection inspired by trapeze artists, tightrope walkers, and other high-flying acts?M Missoniis one of the few brands that would go for such playful inspiration; its signatures include Lurex, unexpected color combinations, and ribbed knits—which, taken together, can lend itself to circus iconography. Plus, M loves a theme: Last season it was all about Texas, while other past references have ranged from Shanghai to Little Red Riding Hood, done with a wink and plenty of sparkle every time.Some of this season’s updates were bold and exaggerated, like high ruffled collars (evoking Pierrot clown costumes), lion prints, and graphic, swirling shapes inspired by big-top tents. Elsewhere, the whimsical theme was a bit more subdued—see the rainbow-striped jumpsuit, bow tie details, and color-blocked macramé skirt. For those who can’t quite get behind the ringmaster connotations, though, you can’t beat M Missoni’s classic knits. Clingy sweater dresses and ribbed wide-leg pants in shades of lime, fuchsia, and lavender would make familiar yet fresh wardrobe additions—especially if you buy the star-printed sneakers to match.
9 September 2015
M Missoni's unlikely inspiration for Resort? The American West. You can bet the 51-year-old Italian house had a unique take on saloon attire. It started with the pioneer days—see the waist-cinching leather belt, Western-inspired shirtdresses, and PVC cowgirl boots—then added a touch of '50s rockabilly and plenty of its signature Lurex. The mash-up made for a bright, whimsical collection that didn't go overboard on kitsch. It pulled it off by focusing on body-skimming silhouettes, like a snug polo dress covered in a cartoonish cactus print and nipped-waist shirtdresses with contrast piping and pastel cabochons along the collars. Those cabochons reappeared elsewhere in the collection, mostly as trompe l'oeil patterns on knitted A-line skirts and maxi dresses. A few pieces with fluffy blue fringe trim didn't quite hit the mark, but girls east and west of the Mississippi will appreciate the fun, free-spirited vibe offered here.
16 June 2015
Days before the Lunar New Year, Angela Missoni delivered her M Missoni collection. "The mood is of a charming Shanghai girl enamored by Chinese tradition," she said via e-mail. "The collection alludes to the world of exaggerated costume designs once fashioned by famed opera performers." Whether the timing with the Chinese holiday was intentional or not, Missoni certainly hit the mark on operatic drama.And, as any young girl might find when trying to marry tradition with modern yearnings, there were moments of both harmony and clashing. The colors and patterns came in a dizzying array of boldness and graphicness, almost as if you were zipping through the streets of Shanghai at night, the heady lights and sounds whizzing by. They worked when the Asian references were subtle: a cropped intarsia jacket with faint Mao styling teamed with a signature knit top and flared skirt, a vibrant ombré yellow-red-black neoprene minidress with a mandarin collar. There were also techy black-on-black jackets and flippy skirts that brought the best of the Italian brand's obsession with knit technology to the table. A harder sell were the pieces that pulled directly from traditional Chinese outfits and skewed too young. M Missoni is at its best when it doesn't resort to tricks. It doesn't need to.
16 February 2015
M Missoni, the little sister to Italian heritage label Missoni, has gained traction with clothes that put a youthful, saccharine spin on the house's established signatures. Think splashy colors, fine-gauge knits, dizzying prints, and lots of Lurex. Pre-Fall included all of the above, but these pieces had a retro, more refined twist. "The collection is nostalgic, with irony," Angela Missoni said. "It's about a girl who grew in her teenage clothes, clad in capes, but she still has a soft spot for the 'little explorer.'" Those capes were highlights—a strawberry swing style channeled a chic Little Red Riding Hood—and would be perfect for conquering the urban jungle. A few velvet suits were unexpectedly groovy, and mashed-up prints (a Missoni mainstay) were loud but more wearable than in collections past. That could be credited to a less sugary color palette—rich shades of crimson, mustard, and cornflower blue had depth—as well as soft fabrics and forgiving shapes. M Missoni's woman has the confidence to wear schoolgirl silhouettes and Mondrian-esque optical prints, but she craves ease and simplicity, too.
15 December 2014
While Frida Kahlo inspirations are a dime a dozen in fashion, that vibrant starting point dovetailed nicely with M Missoni's signature, colorful aesthetic for Spring '15. This season, Angela Missoni and co. reinterpreted several of the iconic artist's most recognizable themes. She made subtle references to Kahlo's works with the opening series of gray intarsia knit looks incorporating—squint or you'll miss them—tiny white skulls that channeled a Día de los Muertos vibe. On the more literal side were festive sweaterdresses combining neon skeleton, monkey, and floral motifs that were a little bittooin-your-face. Elsewhere, the collection continued to touch upon Kahlo's Mexican heritage with standout pieces such as gauzy embroidered shifts; linen peasant tops; and sheer, smocked skirts splashed with painterly rose appliqués. Other highlights included stripey crocheted frocks and rompers (which popped in shades of citron and blue), as well as playful raffia accessories (hello, espadrille flatforms) and a denim field jacket similar to the one Kahlo herself was often photographed wearing.
3 September 2014
Angela Missoni tapped into the laid-back vibe of reggae culture for her M Missoni Resort offering. The Jamaican flag supplied the collection's vibrant color compositions. Easy silhouettes, like apron-style frocks and tops, were cut in madras plaids traditional to the Caribbean. Those loose-fitting checked pieces will be too relaxed for some, but there were plenty of body-con touches elsewhere. We're thinking specifically of a clingy crocheted dress featuring feminine ruffles, which was striped in the colors of the country's flag. Paired with raffia-soled Vans, it played to the brand's knitwear strengths. Ditto went for a thick-ribbed number that was reminiscent of old-school basketball jerseys. Missoni and her team continued to push innovative fabrications with a series of indigo looks including a cute shorts suit, which was cut from a woven denim that was washed, fringed, and then patchworked together. Finished off with novelty accessories such as artisanal drum bags and basketweave wedges, the new lineup had a persuasive, vital energy.
28 May 2014
Grunge glamour was on the menu for Fall at M Missoni. While that theme has already been well-addressed by fashion in recent years, it was executed persuasively here with the characteristic boldness that sets this diffusion line apart. The new collection mashed up rich textures and energetic prints to eclectic effect. Marbleized jacquard pullovers were paired with mismatched sweatpants, for example, and the house's signature space-dye knits were intarsia-ed with a playful rock star pattern. Nowthat'spsychedelic. Elsewhere, Angela Missoni and co. experimented with new silhouettes, including "inverted tulip" skirts. Their asymmetric drape was created by inserting extra pieces of triangle and square-shaped material at the sides—thankfully, that sounds more complicated than it looked. Outerwear was another highlight. A handful of terrific cocoon coats came in tactile fabrications such as a dense, matted wool that had a shearling effect. On the other hand, a group of tartan plaid toppers and kilts did feel like a rehash of 2013's short-lived punk trend, but they still successfully drove home the lineup's grungy, youthful spirit, as did the slouchy beanies and fingerless gloves shown with many of the looks.
5 February 2014
M Missoni may be Missoni's younger diffusion line, but the overall attitude is plenty sophisticated. "This season's mood is ethereal. It's a game of contrasts," said creative director Angela Missoni of the new Pre-Fall lineup. Per usual, she incorporated several of the house's signature splashy prints, giving them an Art Deco spin. The kaleidoscopic motifs added a graphic zing to swingy coats; cropped, relaxed trousers; and flared frocks that had a slightly retro, mod appeal. Elsewhere, Missoni's best-selling space-dyed knits (fun rompers and pullovers) were overlaid with feminine black lace.The real news here was the unexpected use of a neutral color palette. Soft lilac and ivory hues highlighted the textures of croc-stamped jacquard pieces, as well as a cropped jacket and matching kicky skirt cut from a bonded, nubby wool that resembled shearling. Ladylike accessories including top-handle satchels and patent, over-the-knee boots polished off the look. A recently opened boutique in Macao (to be followed by two additional stores in Beijing and one in Hong Kong this spring) further proves that M Missoni is all grown up.
16 December 2013