Twenty8Twelve Fall 2009

February 25th 2009

by Lily Stein

There was so much talk about Sienna and Savannah Miller and their runway debut that we just couldn’t leave out discussing their works here.

The girls have already been successful with their clothes and they have two stores in London. But what was needed to make a great breakthrough is a runway, official acceptance into the world of fashion.

It all was not easy and sisters had to work hard to achieve the results they have now. Here what they say about it:

“It started off as a grunge collection in one direction, then as a glam collection in the other,” said Sienna, “and then it all met somewhere in the middle.” Or, as Savannah put it, “Pirates of the road meets Grace Jones,” adding that from the business point of view, “we’re in a good place to show. It’s selling well, and I think it’s relevant to be able to show a commercial, contemporary collection in London. It’s normal in New York. There should be things girls can really afford.”

“We just want to do what girls want to wear, really,” the girls said.

Despite the fact the Millers’ brand has a big corporate backer in the form of the Spanish jeanswear manufacturer that is behind Pepe, the show was very much a first-steps affair.

All new inexperienced designers, even those who are relatively well-off, need time to develop, to improve their creations.

As experts say between the spray-on stretch jeans, the padded-shoulder T-shirts, the slouchy beanies, and the downbeat washed-out color, there wasn’t much that isn’t already standard young fast-fashion.

There’s something great about Twenty8Twelve’s leather jackets though, they can use them as a brand signature.

Savannah noted that all the items would retail at a price no bigger than £500, and this would, she believes, cause young customers to start watching the line.

“A London girl is what Twenty8Twelve is all about,” Savannah Miller said backstage after presentation of their collection.

The Millers focused on separates such as a cropped leather jackets with epaulettes, hip-length tuxedo jackets, and silk poet shirts, which were typically paired with skintight jeans.

More glamorous and sophisticated styles included puff-skirted mini dresses in black and beige floral silk, and gowns printed with a graphic yellow and red pixilated pattern laced with Swarovski crystals. One mini dress was made entirely from emerald crystals. That looked gorgeous!

What is significant to note is that every model was wearing ankle boots with plenty of clips and zips. They looked very well both with super short hot dresses and skinny jeans.

As for the color palette, we can say nothing was too bright or vivid in comparison to PPQ or some other designers. The hues used are mostly rather restrained: black, greys, dark blue.