After a Spring collection strongly influenced by the natural world, Giorgio Armani returned to the city for Pre-Fall. He s ranged far and wide in his decades-long career, but he s at his best designing for the urban (and urbane) power woman. This was a particularly resonant collection for him, filled with great clothes to wear to work. Silhouette-wise, Armani likes the look of a full, cropped pant this season. It was a surprise to see a pair of pleated off-white trousers in rugged cotton worn with a jacket in a gray menswear material, but it worked. Up top, he showed single- and double-breasted styles and also proposed a boatneck popover top as an alternative to a jacket. For evening, Armani accessorized a draped strapless gown in a liquid-y silk with lug-soled oxfords. It s not a combination that will make it onto the red carpet, but it had a youthful verve that was nonetheless appealing.
