Pitti Bimbo 75 – Spring/Summer 2013
By:  Renee Jacobs

Denim and street fashion at Pitti Bimbo reflect the fun, edgy nature of contemporary youth sportswear, translated for the kids market.  Key elements present in many collections include graphic tees, colored denim, and shots of neon in accessories, details, and even full garments.  Kids streetwear did not lack for color this season, with bright prints, and saturated colors from nature like sunny yellow, summer leaf-y green, and strawberry pink.  Ruffles and embellished details add feminine girly flair to more casual looks at Miss Grant and I Pinco Pallino.
 
In denim, several brands showed classic wash jeans in medium blues, shorts and skirts with slight fading and some wear-and-tear.  The other extremes- very dark, deep indigo, and highly washed pale denim styles- were also on offer, in addition to some chambray for shirting.
 
Another denim trend is use of color in jean styles for both boys and girls.   Boys designers such as Mafrat, Hartford and Fun & Fun showed solid, saturated colors like bright green, cherry red and sky blue, while Notify featured washed soft pastel hues.  For girls, the most popular denim colors were bright neons like pink, yellow, green and electric blue such as those seen at Antik Batik, Cristina Effe, and Miss Grant.
 
In silhouette and material, Tiffosi showed a baggier, comfort-style jean for boys that is more relaxed in the inseam and waist but tapers to the ankle.  Many designers steered away from too much distressing or frayed hems (except in the case of girls’ cutoff mini shorts) opting instead for cleaner rolled hems and fuller silhouettes in both boys and girls collections such as the capris, shorts and skirts shown at Sarabanda and Pinko.