Recently, the Ferragamo boutique at Wynn Las Vegas, in partnership with Nevada Ballet Theatre, presented an intime presentation for invited guests featuring an abridged version (16 of the 66 looks) of creative director Maximilian Davis’s Fall Winter 2024 collection for the venerable Italian fashion house.  Both the event—featuring the luxury brand’s CEO Americas, Danielle Vitale, in conversation with former Vogue Italia and L'Uomo Vogue special contributing editor, Jo Champa—and the clothes, as well as the shoes and leather goods upon which the brand built its reputation, were particularly fab.

Founded in 1927 by Salvatore Ferragamo, the company—which recently changed its name and logo from ‘Salvatore Ferragamo’ in the founder’s signature to simply ‘Ferragamo’ in all-caps and bold—has been pushed to the fore of the fashion conversation (not all that easy for a company for which all but 14% of its revenue is derived from footwear and leather goods) thanks in good part to the buzz around Davis.  The on-the-cusp-of-his-30s British designer—who, following his graduation from the London College of Fashion and three years as a junior designer at Wales Bonner, launched his Maximilian label in 2020 (fans included Rihanna and Dua Lipa)—was appointed creative director of Ferragamo in March 2022, and has held longtime customers and new fans alike, in his thrall, ever since; winning the ‘British Womenswear Designer of the Year’ award at the British Fashion Council’s annual Fashion Awards in 2023.

For Fall Winter 2024, Davis looked back to 1923, when (before returning to Italy and starting his eponymous label) 25-year-old Salvatore Ferragamo had opened the Hollywood Boot Shop—on the corner of Hollywood and Las Palmas Boulevards, right in front of the new Egyptian Theatre—designing shoes for such silver screen legends as Gloria Swanson, Mary Pickford, Douglas Fairbanks, Sr., Rudolph Valentino, Pola Negri, Lillian Gish, Theda Bara, Dolores del Rio, and a young, Charleston-dancing starlet named Joan Crawford.  In fact, it was a century-old photo of Salvatore in the Hollywood Boot Shop, perched on an ottoman, fitting a pair of his bespoke heels on a seated Joan Crawford—seen by Davis in the Ferragamo archives at the Museo Salvatore Ferragamo in Florence—that inspired this collection.

“The 1920s used clothing as a way to celebrate freedom.
And that expression of freedom is something which
resonates with me, with my heritage, and with Ferragamo.”
– Maximilian Davis

What the heck does all of that mean as far as the clothes, shoes, and bags?  Think of an evening en route to a speakeasy, c.1923, when you wanted your outerwear simple (so as not to attract the attention of Prohibition-era cops), but once you removed your coat, it revealed the fabulous flapper dress underneath.  So, Davis delivered tailored outerwear with masculine shoulders (think: Garbo, Crawford, et al.), military-inspired, belted coats, and peacoats with particularly cool sculpted collars.  Suiting includes field-jackets and man-tailored trousers, cashmere skirt suits, chunky sweaters, and stretch wool tights, as well as supple Nappa leather tops and skirts. 

And for evening, dropped waists, ostrich-feather accents, beading, sheer georgette, a material described as ‘lacquered organdie” that could well become a ‘hero’ fabric for Davis, stretch-jersey dresses made from responsibly sourced viscose with asymmetrical tulip silhouettes, patent leather paillettes arranged as the scales of a fish, and deep V-necked minidresses which, over bases of stretch viscose jersey, were draped layers and layers (and one imagines countless yards) of pure silk cord that'd been gathered, bunched, and arrayed in a scalloped jacquard pattern.  All of this is executed in lush olives, burgundies, and burnt ochres, which extend to the accessories, making for gorgeous monochromatic looks for day, and with the addition of black and oxblood, unforgettable looks for evening.

Following is the breakdown of what was what in the runway looks we saw presented in the Ferragamo boutique on the Wynn Esplanade [see slides 2-5 in the slideshow at the top of the page], hyperlinked where possible to the corresponding item at Ferragamo.com:

SLIDE 2
Look 1: Olive Green double-breasted double wool and cashmere pea coat with a wide belt at the bottom worn over a Uniform Green Super Geelong virgin wool wide V-neck knit minidress, matching Uniform Green stretch wool tights, and a pair of olive calfskin ‘Eva’ pumps.

Look 5:  Olive Green soft Nappa leather shirt and matching Olive Green Nappa leather A-line skirt with a wide topstitched belt, worn with a pair of Black stretch kid leather over-the-knee boots with detachable multicolored feathers and an Olive Green calfskin large-sized Tote Bag with Gold Gancio hardware.

Look 7:  Uniform Green Super Geelong virgin wool wide V-neck knit minidress and matching Uniform Green stretch wool tights, with Olive Green cashmere-lined Nappa leather gloves and an Olive Green top-handle felt medium-sized Hug Bag with Gold Gancio hardware.

Look 11:  Swedish Clay double-breasted double Shetland wool and cashmere coat with matching tights, Burgundy calfskin ‘Eva’ pumps, and a Cognac calfskin leather medium-sized Fiamma Bag with Gold Gancio hardware.

SLIDE 3
Look 12:  Bordeaux oversized single-breasted double wool and cashmere coat with martingale half-belt detail in the back and a wide removable belt with a double-buckle over a Bordeaux organic silk georgette halter dress with an asymmetrical handkerchief hem. Worn with Oxblood satin ‘Leonye’ pumps with Oxblood and White feathers and a Dark Barolo leather Fiamma Bag with Gold Gancio hardware.

Look 22:  Black oversized single-breasted double wool and cashmere coat with martingale half-belt in back, a Black silk mousseline halter dress embellished with lacquered studs, a pair of Black satin ‘Leonye’ pumps with Black and White ostrich feathers and a Black calfskin leather Fiamma Bag with Gold Gancio hardware.

Look 24:  Black organic silk crepe long-sleeve dress with gathered hem and topstitch detail on the belt and cuffs paired with Black satin ‘Ambra’ mules and a Black pony hair and calfskin leather medium-sized Fiamma Bag with Gold Gancio hardware.

Look 26:  Black shearling cape with an asymmetric topstitched leather belt and Black responsibly sourced viscose stretch-jersey long-sleeve draped dress cut in a tulip silhouette with asymmetrical looped skirt detail, Black patent leather T-bar strap ‘Lysandra’ pumps and a Black calfskin leather medium-sized Fiamma Bag with Gold Gancio hardware.

SLIDE 4
Look 29:  Red responsibly sourced viscose stretch-jersey long-sleeve draped dress cut in a tulip silhouette with asymmetrical looped skirt details, a pair of Flame Red patent leather T-bar strap ‘Lysandra’ pumps, and a Flame Red top-handle calfskin leather small-sized Hug Bag with Silver Gancio hardware.

Look 30:  Bordeaux wool viscose faille fit field jacket and matching straight-leg men's trousers, worn with Burgundy leather square-tip ‘Carmelita’ loafers and an Oxblood semi-gloss calfskin New Front-Flap Bag with Gold Gancio hardware.

Look 40:  Oxblood lacquered organdie camisole with removable ostrich feather trim and knee-length matching slip skirt, Burgundy patent leather T-bar strap ‘Lysandra’ pumps, and an Oxblood semi-gloss calfskin New Front-Flap Bag with Gold Gancio hardware.

Look 42:  Oxblood lacquered satin kimono-sleeve banded-collar dress paired with matching Oxblood satin ’Leonye’ pumps with Oxblood feathers and a Dark Barolo top-handle calfskin leather medium-sized Hug Bag with Gold Gancio hardware.

SLIDE 5
Look 49:  Burgundy patent leather 'scale' dress on a stretch crepe satin base with Black patent leather T-bar strap ‘Lysandra’ pumps and a Burgundy patent calfskin sequin small-sized Hug Bag with Gold Gancio hardware.

Look 51:  Bordeaux backless knit floating fringed minidress in pure silk cord yarn blended with a comfort-stretch viscose base, with Burgundy satin strappy ‘Ermelia’ sandals and a Burgundy patent calfskin sequin small-sized Hug Bag with Gold Gancio hardware.

Look 61:  Black silk muslin halter dress with a cowl neckline, harness detail, and ostrich feather embellishment worn with Black satin ‘Ambra’ mules.

Look 65:  Black responsibly sourced viscose satin asymmetrical sleeveless dress with draped hem, floating scarfs, and sequined embellishments on the back panel, Black satin ‘Ambra’ mules and Black micro-sequin small-sized Hug Bag with ‘Spirit’ motif and Gold Gancio hardware.

Ferragamo | Fall Winter 2024 collection
Ferragamo at Wynn Las Vegas
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