There s no kind of collection harder for a reviewer to grapple with than one that s predictably competent. Today s Costello Tagliapietra was a classic of the genre: There s just not much to say about a group of expertly draped silk and jersey dresses except, well, that happened…again. Everyone knows that Jeffrey Costello and Robert Tagliapietra are very, very good at designing soigné, day-to-night draped dresses, and this season, that s what they did. Again. Some of the draped dresses were obi-belted; some of them came in watercolor prints that didn t quite gel. Some of them were in different colors, back-to-front. A few at the close of the show were done in satin, and consequently felt dressier and had a bit more structure. C est tout.
The more interesting stuff to reckon with, here, were the looks outside of Costello and Tagliapietra s usual ken. There was an unexpected current of quirky granny chic in this collection, evidenced in cozy hand-knit sweaters and modest alpaca skirts and trousers; meanwhile, the prints that came off as a bit much in the dresses were used to nice, eccentric effect in a couple of layered button-downs. Costello and Tagliapietra are longtime residents of Brooklyn; perhaps now they ve picked up an affection for the borough s dowdy-hipster aesthetic. Whatever the influence, it wasn t fully absorbed, though it was refreshing to see some experimentation on this runway.
