All the trends initiated by Miu Miu

For Miuccia Prada «this is no time for meaningless fashion» - not that there was any doubt about that. The creative and intellectual work of Prada, in the tradition of the now-forgotten fashion criticism, can be interpreted on two different levels: on the one hand the multi-layered, adult ecosystem of Prada, on the other the explosive coolness of the middle age, of sexual tension, of boredom turning into energy à la Miu Miu. The bored but fully dressed mother grappling with the existential problems of the Milanese bourgeoisie recounted by Michelangelo Antonioni's cinema, the privileged (but rebellious) daughter unaware of her somewhat intellectual coolness. The common aesthetic ground for reflection is one, after all: the worker's uniform from Prada, the school uniform from Miu Miu.

When Miuccia Prada founded Miu Miu in 1993, she had a more immediate and instinctive creative project in mind than Prada, drawing inspiration from her years as a student at the height of 1968 - «If I think about it three times, I stop,» explained the creative director herself. The success and hype around the brand, however, came soon after the pandemic period when Miu Miu took on the connotations of a creative hub within which maniacal cool hunters and sophisticated Zeitgeist interceptors can operate. A cultural and aesthetic spirit that, in a totally unexpected way, arrives in 2021 in the form of trousers, jumpers, shirts, blazers, suits («absolute archetypes of everyday clothing», the brand's website read) cut short by the sharp scissors wielded by Miuccia and Lotta Volkova to tear the threads along the edges of the SS22 collection. Miu Miu's shreds, from that precise instant, have spread everywhere: on billboards, on the covers of all the magazines, on the bodies of all the celebrities, on the red carpets and in the wishlists of men seduced (and abandoned in 2007 with the last menswear collection, SS08) by the idea of being able to flaunt the sexiest uniform of the 1920s in the 21st century. Miu Miu became the simultaneous clothing translation of the term viral, was elected brand of the year 2022 by Lyst and is still the hottest according to the latest report compiled by the online shopping platform. Let's look back at the most significant trends of the brand in the past two years.

The cropped school uniform

In the midst of the y2k revival, Miu Miu's SS22 collection was the antidote to the apparent nonsense of the return of the drop waist - a focus on reality that allowed for deep reflection on why fashion had gone back to the direct source of the 2000s. The answer was as simple as it was disarming: cutting the hem of garments, maintaining their credibility and modifying their relationship with the body. Never in the history of covers and editorials in fashion magazines around the world has there been such solidarity in giving space to a cropped uniform consisting of a woven jumper, a blue shirt and a miniskirt in shades of beige.

Ballet Flats 

With FW22, it was the turn of powder pink, powder blue or milk white ballet shoes - all it took was a logo-printed elastic band and silk satin to catapult a pair of shoes into a TikTok sensation. Gen Z was so fascinated by it that they decided to give it a name, to baste a situationship between the worlds of fashion and dance better known as #balletcore (the hashtag has garnered 1 billion views on TikTok). It is booming with searches for the brand according to Lyst and the hunt for the perfect dupe on TikTok, between fit checks and editor-proof shopping guides.

Biker Boots

In order to be able to talk about anxieties, monsters and the unconscious, Miuccia Prada's work could not stop at ballet flats and sporty chic miniskirts with exposed underwear - biker boots paired with leather trousers with double-layered belts, aviator bomber jackets marked by time and argyle jumpers as the alter ego of the clean girl uniform. If even Kim Jones couldn't resist the Miu Miu jumpers, biker boots became the cult item for the mix and match of Gen Z and celebrities. Men, who claimed a vague form of attention from the brand, not only took to the catwalk during the FW22 show but proved crucial in identifying the most faithful dupe to the original.

The Wander Bag

If Miuccia Prada's revolution passes through miniskirts, legwarmers, ballerinas and biker boots, the cult accessory cannot be missed. Miu Miu opts for a mini hobo in matelassé nappa leather, the quilting of which was obtained by a craftsmanship made from the juxtaposition of panels of leather, wadding and elastic fabric. For Lyst, which had already decreed the success of the Wander bag in 2022, and for celebrities such as Emily Ratajkowski or Sydney Sweeney (enlisted by the brand to sign the Miu Wander campaign) it is a real it-bag.

Cardigans and exposed underwear 

«Looking is a window to thinking» is a phrase extrapolated from Miu Miu's website to describe part of the creative process behind the FW23 collection. A way of explaining how a serious-looking cardigan can fit perfectly into a pair of knitted tights and underwear instead of the usual trousers, or how a pair of sequined briefs can function as the fulcrum of an entire styling. The ultimate test was on the Venice Film Festival 2023 red carpet where, amidst a slew of seen-and-seen looks, Emma Corrin's olive green cardigan worn with matching underwear seemed like the most revolutionary gesture since we became addicted to quiet luxury. In just over 24 hours on Lyst, the fashion data scientist, there was a 170% increase in searches for Miu Miu briefs.

The Church and New Balance collaborations 

Photo Credits Marco Lessi

Photo Credits Marco Lessi

Photo Credits Marco Lessi

Photo Credits Marco Lessi

Their debut on the Miu Miu catwalk dates back to last year, but we found them again on the catwalk during the last Fashion Week. The brand's collaboration with New Balance has produced some of the most loved trainers of recent months, a deconstruction and reinterpretation project of the 574 that plays with denim and detailed trims, in the latest show in beige suede and brown leather laces. Similarly, the most recent collaboration with Church has also brought brogues into the limelight, a classic school uniform look, which while for the FW24 collection was sported by Mia Goth and other models in a classic, lace-up manner, for SS24 it was styled in a deliberately hasty manner, accentuating the youthful look of the shoe. 

Boat Shoes 

We come to the latest collection presented by the brand, SS24 - «prototypical clothing ideas full of meaning. Men's swimwear, sportswear, eveningwear, dated underwear, New Balance 530, Church's Shanghai, elegant embroidered and brocade suits,» reads the brand's official website. But if we really have to select the most unexpected combination, the choice has to be suede boat shoes paired with an unbuttoned polo shirt worn underneath. Troye Sivan knows something about this and, like everything Miu Miu touches, it goes viral in the blink of an eye.