Prada Puts the Skirt First, and Milan Takes Note

Miuccia Prada's formula, as the Guardian describes it, begins with a great skirt: a knee-length A-line or pleated piece, worn with a plain sweater and kitten heels. That personal uniform became the spine of the Prada collection shown in Milan, with trousers and dresses deliberately set aside.

The Guardian frames the pairing of Prada with Belgian designer Raf Simons as a partnership that continues to produce results for the fashion house. The paper's fashion desk treats the skirt not as nostalgia but as a decision — a garment given star billing in a week when Milan is otherwise selling spectacle.

Milan Fashion Week is one of the moments when Italy is read abroad through its soft power rather than its politics. The Guardian's coverage is a reminder that the country's most reliable export in the foreign press is not policy but design.