What makes a fashion show successful? For me, it’s mostly about the designer fulfilling the brief. Did he or she do what they set out to do? That’s easy to quantify on some levels, and hard on others. A good show should make you feel something, right? And yet, I often leave these venues feeling cold, confused, or disappointed. 

In Milan, that sentiment helped to explain the freaky, googly-eyed nature of my love of the new Bally, shared with a certain set of writers and editors who own a disproportionate amount of navy clothing. (One person told me he may come to the women’s shows next season just to see it.) Designer Simone Bellotti surprised us all last season with his Swiss Alps wardrobe of boat shoes and ringing cowbell bags. For fall, Bellotti tugged on the string, sending out bell-hem coats, and the thigh-high boots of the season for people who don’t wear thigh-high boots. There was so much talk of straight-up sexiness this past week, but Bellotti is bringing kink, with his shearling-stuffed vests and deep-V-waist pencil skirts. I’m calling his fan club the Bell Hive; this season, even more models were jingling as they walked.