What Would Miuccia Wear

The buzz continues around the recent Prada and Miu Miu shows from the fall-winter Milan and Paris Fashion Weeks about a month ago. Miuccia (Mrs. Prada), co-CEO and co-creative director of Prada, presented garments with simple, yet utterly desirable details that pulled from her personal style: slim cigarette trousers, pencil skirts, polka dots, and layers of transparency were fully on display.

Although Miuccia’s unmistakable taste and discerning eye continually fuel successful ready-to-wear collectsions, the designer got her feet wet working for the family business in the late ’70s, when Prada was only a local leather goods retailer. By the mid-’80s she was leading the brand’s accessories line, and (most notably) produced a line of black lightweight nylon backpacks that would become a brand signature.

It’s with that same sense of concise simplicity that Mrs. Prada and her design partner, Raf Simons, approached their recent fall-winter collectsion. They showcased minimal looks inspired by uniforms, modesty, and good ’ole work. We saw a neutral color palette, long skirts, crewneck sweaters, and oversized blazers—pieces that recall the uniforms of nurses, school teachers, and security officers. In a conversation with Vogue, Miuccia commented, “Mainly what I care about now is to give importance to what is modest, to value modest jobs, simple jobs, and not only extreme beauty or glamour.” A week later, Miuccia presented her fall-winter collectsion for Miu Miu—Prada’s “little sister” brand and the designer’s personal project—drawing again on a notion of seriousness, albeit certainly dialed back. Sequined hot pants and see-through pieces probably spoke more about sexiness and fun than about sobriety, yet stylings with eyewear and classic tailoring evoked a cool intellectual vibe.

The praised shows testify to the strong brand DNA that Miuccia has milled into her two labels over the last decades. There’s always a worldly intelligence in her designs—philosophy and contemporary events in addition to art and fashion shape Mrs. Prada’s design process. Indeed, her educational background doesn’t reflect that of the typical designer—she completed a PhD in political science at the University of Milan before studying to become a mime artiste, joining the Communist Party and working at Milan’s Piccolo Teatro. Despite a love for the arts, Miuccia doesn’t venture into avante-garde territory with her fashion work, rather she’s keen on designing wearable products that people want.

Her garments evoke a sense of familiarity. Twin sets, dress suits, sleek trousers...all those prim and proper pieces that already exist in our wardrobes to some capacity, or perhaps what we “borrowed” from parents and grandparents. Prada takes these classic bourgeois garments and infuses a sense of naughtiness, weirdness, or “ugliness” into them. The result is something chic and innovative, yet approachable. Who knew that a cardigan or a button-up tucked into hosiery would look so fresh and easy to wear!

It’s remarkable how much Prada and Miu Miu drive trends in our contemporary fashion landscape, especially when it’s a simple detail that becomes irresistible. High-waist cigarette trousers, small round eye-glasses, plastic floral brooches, slim minimal dresses, and skirts in delicate fabrics—these are some of the pieces that caught my attention and that I think we’ll start to see more of on the street thanks to Mrs. Prada. But, to be clear, you don’t have to buy Prada to enjoy wearing such pieces—these are clothes that recall ’90s and 2000s vintage, and many emerging designers share Miuccia’s vision of dressing confident modern women. With Miuccia, there’s always two sides to the coin, classy yet misbehaved—and that never goes out of style! Get inspired and shop, below.