"A Seattle-grunge mood with an Ali MacGraw attitude," was Justin Thornton and Thea Bregazzi s summary of their direction for Fall at Preen Line. "Grunge is so dark and cult, so we wanted something romantic to contrast it with," Thornton said about the duo s secondary collection. "Ali MacGraw—her effortless attitude and the way she combined a boyish style with delicate femininity—was the perfect muse."
Given that the seventies tangentially inspired many grunge classics, it s not completely shocking that Thornton and Bregazzi were able to massage these two ideas together. The red buffalo-check tops and dresses, many made out of a dull satin, were digitally printed with tiny black flowers, offsetting the masculinity of the plaid. A satin shirtdress in green buffalo check was embroidered on the back with the words "Music Is My Life: Rock Roll Saved the World," surrounded by a rainbow of crewel flowers.
But it was the dominant colors—true red, blue, and green in particular—that really defined the collection. Thornton said he and Bregazzi were inspired by Kurt Cobain s shirts. To be sure, one could easily drop the grunge god s red-and-black striped top and mossy green mohair cardigan into the lineup of patchwork rabbit-fur bombers and tiny floral-patchwork frocks, which served as a modern nod to Gunne Sax. But Cobain s style—and grunge in general—had a murkiness about it. The idea of MacGraw s clean look made Preen Line s Fall effort so much clearer.
