In the three years of Rue du Mail s existence, Martine Sitbon has made the label a go-to source for a dress that s keyed into the trends without being desperate about it. Tailoring hasn t necessarily been her thing, but it would ve been impossible for her to miss fashion s move toward more structured silhouettes; so, keeping current, she added some to her Fall lineup tonight.
Belted high on the waist, a man s oversize jacket in a shiny/matte shade of brown became a dress. Bermuda shorts, which have been popping up with regularity elsewhere, appeared here in satin for evening, or in a more traditional suiting fabric with a paper-bag waist and paired with a fitted jacket for day. Trenches received a fair bit of Sitbon s attention—she played with tucks and folds around the shoulders on one, and spliced another in half on the front. There were also a few interesting quilted jackets in the mix; with their puffy, shawl-like lapels, they almost looked like puffers.
As timely as most of that was, Sitbon s heart belongs to frocks. They came in fitted and ruched knits and a bell-shaped sleeveless velvet, and there was a lot of novelty in a group made from swagged silk threads, especially the narrow gold number. The smart investment this season? That would be the slender coat-dress. Everybody s got a version on their runway, but Rue du Mail s—with its one draped and fringed lapel—is more sexy than boxy, guaranteeing higher returns.
