Let's Get Fruity! x

Fruits are in Fashion! Eat, wear or accessorize! Make a colourful, fresh statement using fruit-inspired fashion & accessories to add a burst of zing to your wardrobe. This season zesty coloured fruit prints dominated the runway. Citrus fruits were a big inspiration for a lot of the designers this year. A number of them brought out a Spring/Summer 2011 collection of bright, interesting pieces of tutti frutti prints, first showcased at the London, Paris & Milan fashion weeks. It seems like the fashion world has gone fruit-crazy with everyone feeling a little bit fruity this season. 

There were 70’s style fun banana prints on the Prada S/S '11 runway collection. Prada literally went bananas dressing the models in banana print shirts, skirts, nails & earrings, while Miuccia Prada, the designer herself wore banana earrings backstage.

Wunderkid with the collection of Spring/Summer '11 chose cherry & strawberry prints on excessively large & bulky skirts & dresses, along with a lot of colors & floral prints.

Stella McCartney’s S/S '11 show-stopping pieces were fresh, vibrant & came in a variety of vivid citrus prints. With a mix of bold prints of oranges, limes & grapefruits against white background to highlight the prints & the contrasts between them.

Dolce & Gabbana’s limited collection featured a smattering of cherries. Cute little cherry prints popped up on D&G dresses, cardigans, thong sandals & bikinis plus, across Anna Sui & Sonia Rykiel’s resort collections. Other fruits that took to the various runways included; oranges at Akris, strawberries, grapes & pineapples at Betsey Johnson’s resort collection. Apples were a popular choice for Suno, whereas Blumarine models carried lemon handbags.

At Moschino Cheap & Chic, the bold lemon print added a dose of divine vibrant color to the Spring/Summer '11 ready-to-wear collection.

Zac Posen RTW Spring '11 runway collection represented fruits only as a detail. Notice the melon brooch. With his wacky prints, fun fruit appliques, soft jerseys & ruffle look, Zac Posen’s Z Spoke line screamed young, fun, and fresh.

Miu Miu S/S '11 collection offered a repetitive apple pattern across dresses, skirts & trousers in a variety of colours with belt buckles & earrings featuring the zesty fruit.

Louis Vuitton’s Resort 2011 collection brings out pastel coloured prints of fruit vines & peonies worked onto flouncy skirts, shorts & trousers. Keeping it feminine, pretty & ladylike!

It all started when Anna Dello Russo, 48, Editor of Japanese Vogue, arrived at Milan Fashion Week wearing an off the shoulder YSL dress embroidered with little strawberries & accessorised with a big cherry hat! She’s known for her quirky fascinators & show-the-attitude-that’s-inside policy. She's a true inspiration to middle-aged women everywhere who think they are too old to still have fun with fashion.

In case you're wondering how to work a watermelon hat & let's be honest, who isn't? Here’s Anna’s 10 rules to wearing headpieces [AnnaDelloRusso] 

Talking about fruits, how can we possibly miss mentioning Carmen Miranda. She’s noted for her signature fruit hats from 40’s & 50’s. Miranda’s enormous, fruit-laden hats are iconic visuals recognized around the world. Much of the popular fruit jewelery seen today is often still fondly called 'Carmen Miranda jewelery.' 

Singer, Katty Perry wore a Carmen Miranda fruit dress designed by The Blonds during the 2009 Grammys. Check out some of the OTT pieces worn by the modern pop star & her stylish take on Carmen Miranda inspired fruit bowl get-up below.

So this season think bright colours & bold fruit prints to really stand out in the crowd. If you would prefer to ‘taste test’ this fruity trend, check out Charlotte Olympia’s banana clutch bag or mixed fruit platform heels or flats. The striking heels are decorated with interlaced pineapples, bananas, strawberries & watermelons. It is the perfect way to incorporate the trend into your everyday style with effortless flair.

Of her pieces, Charlotte Dellal, the designer behind the Charlotte Olympia label, says; 

“They are tongue in cheek but wearable, I like accessories which have a sense of humor.”

Love xXx