Modern Russian styles hitting U.S. stores

McClatchy Tribune News Service | Published: December 4, 2012 | Modified: December 4, 2012 at 4:09 pm

Leo Tolstoy was a fashionista.

They don’t teach you that in comparative lit. But just leaf through his 1870s masterpiece, “Anna Karenina,” and you’ll come across enough detail on rosettes and lace sleeves and velvet (“about all the rest there might be a doubt, but the velvet was delicious”) you’d think he was a judge on “Project Runway.”


A model wears a creation part of the Dolce & Gabbana women's Fall-Winter 2012-13 fashion collection, during the fashion week in Milan, Italy, Sunday, Feb. 26, 2012. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

So Tolstoy would perhaps be pleased with this fall’s Russian-inspired apparel and accessories. In stores now, you’ll find velvet, brocade, lace and lots and lots of fur (or faux fur) trim — and just in time for the new film version of “Anna Karenina,” which stars Keira Knightley and Jude Law, and hit theaters Nov. 16.

“I read the novel at university and again now, and it’s much better when you read it when you’re older — it’s just brilliant,” says Jacqueline Durran, who not only was costume designer for the film but was consultant on a special Anna Karenina capsule collection produced for Banana Republic.

Yes, Bahnahnahhh, as the British costumer so elegantly pronounces it, is offering up a line inspired by costumes in the film — including black lace and jacquard dresses, a wool cape and faux fur stoles (which can be wrapped around the head and worn as a hat) for women, a flannel suit and military topcoat for men.

It doesn’t take much, says Durran. “You can put one element into your wardrobe that will make it pop and give it an Anna Karenina twist.”

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