When it comes to knowing how to design garments, bags, and shoes intended not only to be part of a daily repertoire but also to offer an aesthetic touch of beauty, Prada knows best. Yesterday, Miuccia Prada and Raf Simons presented the Prada Fall/Winter 2023 collection in Milan, and this show has the fashion world buzzing for good reason.
Clean and sleek new trapezoidal-shaped bags showed off an understanding of elegance, and Mrs. Prada shared that “this collection is about finding beauty everywhere, beauty of different kinds.” And with that, the show presented distinct parts, starting with wedding and floral-inspired embellished skirts paired with cozy sweaters and moving along to cocooning volumes in cozy menswear-inspired coats and down-padded skirts.
The soundtrack also delighted and took us along the romantic-like vision, starting with Roxy Music’s “In Every Dream Home A Heartache,” followed by The Kinks’s “I Go to Sleep” and ending with the powerful Strauss’s “The Blue Danube” Waltz.
The New Shape of Prada Bags
Of course, the bags drew us in, and the first looks were void of bags. As each model came down the runway, I waited to be shown the next direction to expect from Prada regarding its bags. And then it happened. A structured, trapezoidal-shaped bag with sleek formed leather (and floral detailing on some) was introduced. This frame-top bag gives a new point of view to Prada’s minimalistic and fashion-forward bag focus we’ve seen in seasons prior.
Different iterations of this bag were then shown, the next less evening-inspired and more everyday inspired, still with the trapezoidal shape but an all-over leather body and double handles. The shape itself glides between the practicality of daily carrying and the sensuality of an exciting and new design. The last version of the bag brought the triangle, the shape that denotes the House, back to the bag itself, in logo form.
The entire vision of the show was created with great care, one that melded and brought the importance to finding beauty in everyday simplicities and celebrating extravagant details. Prada is always a few steps ahead with its designs, and I expect these bags and collection to become part of the Prada modern-day uniform.
