Six Revisited Wardrobe Essentials for Spring 2025 From Italian Brands at Milan Fashion Week
MILAN — Wardrobe essentials needn’t be boring.
Amid a slowdown in luxury consumption, several young designers and established brands anchored their spring 2025 collections in wearability at Milan Fashion Week, but added inventive twists that turned basics into desirable items.
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Here, WWD rounds up six womenswear wardrobe pieces for shoppers to add to their closets for summer 2025, from the pristine shirtdress and perfect novelty denim pants to arty takes on knitwear and modern shirts.
The Field Jacket: Herno
Herno had the perfect, lightly padded field jackets for spring crafted from linen or in technical rainproof nylon. Belted or effortlessly worn open layered atop cable-knits in degrade effect, they worked a subdued color palette of beige, cream, tan and blush pink. It complemented a total look that stood out especially for the outerwear component, which included the First Act family of raincoats, bomber jackets and bikers in PEF-certified Neoprene.
The Shirtdress: Fabiana Filippi
Creative director Lucia De Vito delivered an effortlessly chic collection, further expanding Fabiana Filippi’s knitwear expertise into other fabrications and shapes. This season, she worked with cotton to imbue ease in refined everyday pieces, as seen in pristine shirtdresses ranging from renditions with graphic paneling as embellishment to gentler versions with puffed sleeves. These flanked looks with a retro vibe, marked by a nipped waist and crafted from fil coupé and jacquard cloqué with 3D effects, as well as separates, including fluid printed shirts, sleeveless field jackets and denim blousons.
The Skirt: Mantù
The study of proportions is king at Mantù, the in-house brand of Italian manufacturing company Castor, which works with a plethora of luxury fashion houses. In pouring its know-how in its own label, the firm keeps things unfussy with uncomplicated silhouettes targeting women on the move. In addition to its signature tailoring, for spring the brand displayed a series of everyday dresses cut from linen or bright-hued cotton as well as feminine pieces with a sporty feel, as seen in oversize trenchcoats, cropped bomber jackets and pleated midi skirts in technical fabric, channeling utilitarian flair.
The Shirt: Cuantico
If looking for a shirt, this is the brand to know. Founders Chiara Apperti, Consuelo Canducci and Chiara Ciolli have always believed the shirt is an essential and versatile wardrobe piece that can transcend time and easily go with business, leisure and cocktail looks. Hence the motto of the indie label they launched in 2021, which is: “We do shirts for a reason, not for a season.”
For spring, the designers continued to reinterpret shirts in a fresh and modern way, via maxi stripes in primary colors, buttons lacquered in the brand’s frosting pink and the now signature wave-shaped front pocket in different sizes. Iterations ranged from the classic Mayfair oversize shirt and the Soho boxy style to the Sporty asymmetric shirt featuring a removable hood and the College and Milano designs cut from oxford cotton. Mannish boxer and wide-leg pants completed the look.
The Denim Pants: Federica Tosi
Federica Tosi put a stronger focus on daywear in her spring collection, filled with approachable pieces conveying confidence and sense of ease. Surfing the ‘70s wave that has recently made a comeback, she veered from the strictly boho interpretation of the decade toward one more attuned to her sleek aesthetic, flanking long denim skirts and roomy trenchcoats with fluid dresses and a standout khaki boiler suit. The extra wide-leg fit of denim pants in the same color turned the design into a compelling alternative to the indigo ones usually hanging in everyone’s wardrobe.
The Knit: Cavia
The knitwear-obsessed Martina Boero continued to channel her arts-and-crafts spirit into a whimsical range of knitted pieces, inspired for spring by convivial meals and everything that’s on the table come Sunday’s lunchtime. The hand-crocheted tops came in a variety of styles, from the cropped version with bell sleeves to Henley crewnecks featuring deadstock textiles in contrasting colors and sailor-collared sweaters with crocheted floral appliqués blooming on the bottom half.
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