So Dolce and Gabbanna (the designers, not the company) have made some eyebrow-raising statements recently and received some backlash – from Elton John, of all people.

Elton John
Elton John almost got an apology out of Dolce and Gabbana. Almost.

The Italian design duo, Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana, whose romantic union lasted 23 years until 2005, told Italy's Panorama magazine: "We oppose gay adoptions. The only family is the traditional one."

It sounds a bit like a thinly veiled attempt at controversy, especially considering the rest of their statements – seemingly taken straight out of a US Republican speech and not the minds of two gay Italian women’s wear designers.

The designers, whose recent Milan Fashion Week show was a celebration of motherhood and featured models and their babies on the catwalk added: "No chemical offsprings and rented uterus: life has a natural flow, there are things that should not be changed."

Dolce, 56, said: "You are born to a mother or father - or at least that's how it should be. I call children of chemistry synthetic children. Rented uterus, semen chosen from a catalogue."

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Elton John, father of two with husband David Furnish, naturally took issue with the entirety of that statement. On Sunday, he posted a picture of the designers on Instagram, blasting them in the description: "How dare you refer to my beautiful children as "synthetic". And shame on you for wagging your judgemental little fingers at IVF - a miracle that has allowed legions of loving people, both straight and gay, to fulfil their dream of having children. Your archaic thinking is out of step with the times, just like your fashions. I shall never wear Dolce and Gabbana ever again. #BoycottDolceGabbana."

A photo posted by Elton John (@eltonjohn) on

According to the Telegraph, Gabbana, 52, has since responded to the boycott with a statement saying: "We firmly believe in democracy and the fundamental principle of freedom of expression that upholds it. We talked about our way of seeing reality, but it was never our intention to judge other people's choices. We do believe in freedom and love."

Dolce meanwhile, has since explained: "I'm Sicilian and I grew up in a traditional family, made up of a mother, a father and children. I am very well aware of the fact that there are other types of families and they are as legitimate as the one I've known. But in my personal experience, family had a different configuration. That is the place where I learnt the values of love and family. This is the reality in which I grew up, but it does not imply that I don't understand different ones. I was talking about my personal view, without judging other people's choices and decisions."

Smooth backtrack there. Real smooth.