Milan Fashion Week: Everything that happened on the first day

The first day of MFW ended in a whirlwind of events and fashion. From Diesel to Fendi, the brands whisked us away to different and contrasting worlds that we experience with the same light intensity with which we look in the mirror when we put on a new dress. Add a splash of perfume and voila, we're ready for anything, from an open-air rave to a tropical jungle, from a night out with the coolest girlfriends to a tour of Naples. And as always, we end up running barefoot in our shoes.

Here's a look back at the first 24 hours of MFW.

Mariacarla Boscono and Vittoria Ceretti in Cavalli's Jungle of the Seventies

The new collection designed by Fausto Puglisi has all the heritage of Roberto Cavalli with his long flowing dresses and animal prints. It is entitled Welcome to the jungle and is worn by the hottest Italian top models of recent years, Vittoria Ceretti and Mariacarla Boscono: Valentina Cortese, Bianca Jagger and Cher. On the catwalk, the maxi dresses have the warm colours of sunsets and nature, the fabrics are flowing, the prints imitate feathers, leaves, flamingos and polka dots and the trousers are very fitted. Thin scarves evoke the coolness of it-girls, while the mood is clearly seventies.

The open-air rave by Diesel

Not even the pouring rain stopped the 7,000 people, including industry insiders, students and fashion fans, who gathered at Scalo Farini to attend the Diesel fashion show, one of the few MFW events open to the public. A techno soundtrack curated by Senjan Jansen put the crowd in an open-air rave, dancing and having fun until 2am while models and models took turns presenting the SS24 collection on the long, elevated catwalk. Glenn Martens created 73 looks with a "destroyed" effect that took Y2K codes to the extreme. Everything is tight, distorted, extreme: between balls of denim rolled out on dresses and jumpers to give them three-dimensionality, nude latex dresses, tattered denim, garments covered in patent leather, full of tear stains, Spice Girls t-shirts, crystal-trimmed miniskirts and the cut-out B-Berny.

Marco Rambaldi's "Malafemmina" walks barefoot with shoes in hand

"The world we live in is afraid of the shameless and free woman". Explains Marco Rambaldi, who performed his diverse and inclusive cast barefoot and with shoes in hand in a garden in the northern part of Milan. A way to reconnect with nature, real and spirit, to remind us that we are all free to just be ourselves. And that judgements, regrets, malice or guilt belong in the nettles. Malafemmina, the name of the collection, is a hymn to freedom and consists of stylised hearts, lace gloves, macramé and crochet dresses, manifesto t-shirts, tights that mimic tattoos, glittery sets and floppy lingerie dresses.

The star-studded front row at Fendi

They chat, they smile, they take pictures. Linda Evangelista, Naomi Campbell, Kate Moss, Amber Valletta, Demi Moore, Gwendoline Christie, Christina Ricci and Naomi Watts sit in the front row at Fendi looking like a group of girlfriends who haven't seen each other in a long time and want to exchange stories about each other's lives. A veritable parade of stars arrived in Milan to admire the collection (rumoured to be the last) that friend Kim Jones has designed for Fendi. Kate, Demi and the others clapped and cheered enthusiastically in front of the colour-block looks, some of which were inspired by Africa, Rome and Karl Lagerfeld's spring-summer 1999 collection. Surely they can already imagine wearing the silk evening gowns, shiny coats, goat mohair knits, soft tailored suits and the new Flip bag, a shopper that folds like a clutch bag, on the red carpets.

The two souls of Naples by N°21: between aristocracy and sensuality

"Naples is not an experience for me because it represents my origins. I bring together the aristocratic soul and the bourgeois soul, culture and carnality, false morality and shameless natural sensuality." This is how Alessandro Dell'Acqua describes the inspiration for N°21's SS24 collection, a blend of refined elegance, discreet luxury and eroticism in which the aristocratic and the carnal, weddings and funerals, Sammartini's veiled Christ and the Maschio Angioino, the Capodimonte Museum and the Spanish quarters coexist. How do these elements translate into fashion? With white organza suits and coats, petticoat dresses, men's shirts worn with open underwear, lace and chiffon, gloves and veils, sequined dresses, midi skirts, tank tops, iridescent maxi sequins and satin boxer shorts.