Premier Vision - Preview

On the wake of New York's fall fashion week, comes Premier Vision.

For the third season in a row, American designers staged their fall trends ahead of London, Milan and Paris.

Back to basics with natural fibers and fine fabrics such as cashmere, mohair, Ostrich and marabou, and velvet donned the collections, but fur was hardly a scarce commodity on the runways, with full-length coats, wraps and trims.

Embellishments dress up plain fabrics, including jeweled buttons, beads, metallic sequins and trim, with bold hues of turquoise, flame red layered over shocking pink and chartreuse.

The New York runway expressed soft, sheer and sexy, showing higher hemlines, long sleek necklines and silhouette-form wear.

This year's Premier Vision will feature 812 exhibitors specializing in weaving, from 14 countries including 14 new companies - who together constitute the best in European textile creativity. Including the Fiber representatives, the style bureaux and the book shops, there are a total of 849 exhibitors spread throughout the Parc des Expositions Paris-Nord Villepinte, with the total surface of the salon estimated at 110,000 square meters.

Premier Vision's spring-summer 2001 will launch an invitation to colour

"I want to be what I love'
light,
transparent,
real
and unique
...I invite you to be what you love."

We are expecting to see light, weightless colours with neutrals combined with brights fringed for excitement and contrast. Pinks, reds and purplish tones with a generous display of flowers for bright or mysterious appeal. We will see oranges and muddied browns with golds in pearly transparencies. Cold blues of shallow waters and greens offer subtle hints of loneliness and innocence

Technology, performance and fiber blends are words to characterize 21st century fabrics. Even natural fibres are adopting new functions which, though often invisible, lend special properties similar to those of the most technical fabrics: easy care, accrued comfort, exceptional qualities of hand and drape.

We will see unique blends proving more organic with irregular yarns and micro bouclettes. Linens, crepes, hemp and ramie will be used in sophisticated designs and we expect to see more selvedges, torn edges and unraveled fabrics used in combination with exotic embroideries and appliques.

The Premier Vision Performance Code will reveal invisible technologies including Antibacterial, anti-UV, breathable, waterproof, thermo-regulating, and shock-resistant. Indeed, 21st century fabrics have become ‘intelligent' possessing performance qualities which are often invisible and undetectable to the touch, as they affect neither the look of the fabrics nor their behavior.

Exhibitors include wovens in Sportswear/Activewear and Denim Corduroy, Wool Type Fabrics and Other Fibres, Linen, Colour Woven/Shirtings and Knitwear and Silk/Silky Aspects, Lace/embroidery/Ribbon, Prints and for the ‘Prospective' area.

By Anndrea Vorobej