Despite the colder temperatures invading the Brazilian air with the coming of autumn, the forty-first edition of São Paulo Fashion Week (SPFW) gathered the finest Brazilian designers to showcase their 2017 Spring-Summer collections this past week.

Being the fifth biggest fashion week, just behind London, Paris, Milan and New York’s, SPFW is highly awaited by the fashion world, as it offers a South American take on trends and looks.

35 runway shows, put on by the most exclusive and renowned Brazilian brands, exhibit a vast array of beautifully displayed hair and makeup looks, shoes and clothing styles that any self-proclaimed fashionista (like myself) won’t want to miss.

Here are my top 4 favorite brands of this year’s SPFW and a rundown of their designs:

Reinaldo Lourenço

Innovating from past years, designer Reinaldo Lourenço decided to retreat from getting inspiration from his travels around the world and bring his focus back on his own emblems.

Feminine and sophisticated shapes permeated the runway, accompanied by geometric shapes and forms, that give the brand a pop-art feel.

Sequin details, pleats and oversized elements revealed the visible 80’s inspiration for this collection.

Stripes were a clear protagonist of Lourenço designs. Thinner or thicker, the pattern was always present in mostly every look of the runway, and even paired with a modern twist on the bomber jacket.

Karl Lagerfeld for Riachuelo

Somber and daring was this year’s exclusive Riachuelo collaboration with head designer and creative director of the Chanel and Fendi fashion houses, Karl Lagerfeld.

Possibly being the most anticipated show of the week, it lived up to expectations.

Bold animal prints and houndstooth patterns decorated the graphic tees, trousers, shorts and shoes of the collection.

Black, white, and red with a touch of pink was the perfect color palette to portray Lagerfeld’s audacious nature in his designs.

In addition to leather and cotton fabrics, the German designer could not forgo introducing tweed in some of the pieces of the collection, a clear reference to the famous Chanel hallmark.

PatBo

Designer Patricia Bonaldi celebrates Brazil with a vibrant and buoyant show, despite the recent political crises, in her Spring-Summer 2017 collection.

Gathering inspiration from the colors of the Brazilian flag, blues, greens and yellows flooded the runway with structured draping, sheerness and a mix between flowy and body-hugging fabrics to complement the rich selection of shades.

Patchwork also made an appearance in this year’s PatBo runway show. Tropical prints were stamped all over this collection, generally on 80’s inspired denim pieces and varsity jackets that gave the brand a newly youthful look.

A PatBo collection isn’t a PatBo collection without embroidery. Bonaldi’s trademark could not go unnoticed in this year’s show and made its presence felt through its usage in sheer tights that gave an illusion of delicate tattooing parading the runway.

Helô Rocha

Established in 2005, Helô Rocha has positioned itself as one of the most distinguished brands in Brazil with its unique style and daring choices.

This year it was no different.

A brand that has been known for reflecting the sensuality of a woman through its designs has portrayed this aspect of a woman’s character once again but in a more delicate manner.

Using (and abusing) ruffles and breezy chiffon fabrics, that brought the “see-through” trend to the runway, Helô Rocha has proved that one can be sexy without being tacky.

Inspired by the bandits of the nineteenth and twentieth-century Brazilian northeast, meticulous embroidery and the use of studs on leather abounded, not only on the clothes but on the shoes.

Pastel and earthy colors filled Helô Rocha’s exhibition of innovative designs, closing the second-to-last day of SPFW.

Until next time, SPFW! Foi bom enquanto durou!

Images by Zé Takahashi