"Thoughtful, quiet, a little more sober," is how Derek Lam described his new collection. On each seat, his PR team placed a paper bookmark that read "The Library," and the opening series of Persian floral prints was influenced by the frontispiece of an old book he came across. But you d hardly call his Fall girl bookish, not with her paisley brocade bodysuit, leather pencil skirt, and gold-dipped oxfords.
Lam s show had a sixties vibe that went beyond the bouffant hairdos and smoky cat eyes. Ruby Aldridge s white peacoat, poplin shirt, V-neck, and full black skirt conjured visions of some quirky coed, only in real life her jacket probably wasn t shearling, the sweater wouldn t have been cashmere, and the skirt most definitely wasn t black patent. As always, there was great outerwear here, but Lam de-emphasized fur in favor of down, cutting a jacket and vest in neat, trim shapes.
When it came time for the final passage of eveningwear, we were firmly in the present. Only a high-tech mill could pull off those Aran sweaters made from twisted nylon tulle, and only a modern-thinking designer would pair them with long chiffon skirts trailing trains.
