Last season they auctioned off some beautiful stuff.

PRADA PROTOTYPES AUCTIONED ON LINE FOR CHARITY Exclusive pieces on prada.com from April 15 to May 6 Milan, April 10, 2008 – An auction of PRADA prototypes from the 2008 Spring/Summer collections gets underway on April 15 at 12.00 C.E.T. (Central European Time.)

The prototypes, ten unique pieces in total split between women’s clothes and
accessories, will be auctioned each Tuesday on a weekly basis. Those going on-line
will have seven days to get their favourite item: three trouser prototypes will be
available from April 15 at midday, one bag and two pairs of boots from April 22, the
third week offering four skirts.

Proceeds from the auction will go to the San Raffaele Foundation, one of the most
important Italian institutions concerned with medical research, clinical work and
training.

The auction offers bidders the chance to interact with Prada and other on-line users,
uploading their own photos and promoting their own Internet site. A graphic allows
one to track the history of bids made for each item.

THE LOTS
The prototypes are part of the work that went into the development of the
Spring/Summer 2008 collections, using unusual colours in an imaginative print
which conjures up an intense landscape of carnivorous flowers, dragons, hybrid
creatures and mysterious nymphs.

The ready-to-wear items are made in Gazar, a heavy organza, popular in Haute
Couture of the Fifties. The twenty colour per square printing process ensures a more
precise and richer result than with the more normal ten colour print.

The accessories, which reprise the same unusual themes are unique prototypes made
specifically for the auction, in plum and antique pink coloured doeskin, with
printing using a inkjet process, before finally being rubbed down to obtain a shiny
effect.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION
• The auction is only open to those who are 18 years of age or over.
• Orders can be placed from 217 countries around the world (details on
www.prada.com)
• In accordance with normal international commercial practice, the Prada
Group undertakes to expedite the products free of charge in as short a time
as possible.
• The auctions start each Tuesday at midday C.E.T. (Central European Time)
and finish the following Tuesday at the same time.

via How to Get Original Prada Prototypes — The Cut: New York Magazine’s Fashion Blog