Bella Hadid opens Fendi autumn/winter 2022 at Milan Fashion Week

The model opened a schedule packed with in-person shows

Bella Hadid leads the models' finale at the Fendi autumn/winter 2022 show at Milan Fashion Week. Reuters

Milan Fashion Week is back in all its glory, as shown on Wednesday, when model Bella Hadid opened the Fendi autumn/winter 2022 show. Hadid walked down the runway in a sheer dress under a fur jacket.

Over the course of 52 ethereal looks, creative director Kim Jones conjured a world of genteel femininity, shot through with a harder attitude as he sent out delicate, almost fragile, barely-there chiffon looks in soft ice cream tones.

Fendi presents its women's autumn/winter 2022 collection on the Milan Fashion Week runway. AFP

Cut into retro-inspired slip dresses, fragile tops that slid off shoulders, trousers and even a jumpsuit, these were worn with long opera gloves in pistachio and flame red, but to stop it from looking too pretty, was deftly mixed with sharply tailored tweed.

Jackets were tightly sculpted to the body, and arrived with belted half aprons and corsetry, while Jones showed off his tailoring skills with fluid trousers, slick shorts, and long elegant coats.

There was lots of dark wash denim, as a round-shouldered top came paired with high-waisted, floor grazing jeans worn with a second-skin leather corset. Meanwhile, more leather arrived as a slim cut, midi-length skirt, edged with chiffon, in a shape that was both directional and flattering.

With tall flat boots and flipped collars on many of the jackets, the show was shot through with a modern flash of toughness every woman will recognise. As the palette shifted through from sorbet to denim and on to black, Jones was able to show the audience how he really is making the house of Fendi his very own.