Peak Chic

DiorAlps (left) brings glam to the slopes while Emporio Armani (above) gives us the unexpected.

From Dioralps to Vivienne Westwood, luxury fashion is redefining skiwear this season with high-function gear, bold prints, and après-ski flair made to slay on and off the slopes.

Heading for some high-altitude fun this fall? When it comes to alpine vacations, dressing the part is half the battle — and what you might lack in on-slope experience can always be resurrected with a little creative après-ski style. Nothing suggests a world of exuberance more than a ski vacation, and luxury fashion is leaning into this destination dressing. Who doesn’t love a little pre-vacation shopping?

As more people than ever head to the slopes, fashion houses such as Prada’s Linea Rossa Snow Collection, DiorAlps, and Moncler Grenoble are capturing this growing clientele with dedicated collections. But this season, other designers took aim. Just a few months before the death of the great designer Giorgio Armani, the Emporio Armani show gave us unexpected looks dedicated to technical skiwear. The coed show featured down-filled skiwear in a patchwork of colors, accessorized with wool beanies, felt caps, and heavy-duty mountaineering boots. Suddenly, my current skiwear seems rather bland. The Sacai menswear show was a beautiful mashup of technical skiwear and après fashions, with genderless, ski-ready outfits in green and yellow or wildly printed.

Dressing for a winter escape requires a blend of high-functioning gear with the addition of some luxury attire — it’s a tested equation that’s been given a serious recharge this season. Who would have thought the queen of A-list eveningwear, Elie Saab, would deliver sporty outerwear embellished with sequins, form-fitting jumpsuits with balaclavas, stirrup leggings, cowl-neck sweaters, and a ton of fur? Fur is one of the most notable fabrics of the season, and men didn’t escape the off-piste fluff with the likes of Prada’s oversized fur collar atop a cherry-red padded vest and Dolce & Gabbana’s multitude of fur-edged jersey hoodies and gilets. Real or faux, the exuberance of the material suggests both a need for insulation and an elite lifestyle — just what being stylish in the mountains requires.

Dressing for ski season just got a serious upgrade — make sure to slay on and off the slopes.

Kim Smith has been a professional wardrobe stylist in Honolulu since 2004. Born a true Londoner, Smith had a successful career in public relations in the fashion industry in London for more than eight years before moving to Hawai‘i in 2002. Smith’s work spans a vast array of magazines, retailers and television as well as working with individual clients on their specific style needs.

See her work at kimsmithstyle.com.