There s always a discrepancy—sometimes vast, sometimes slight—between the clientele a designer imagines for his clothes and the women who actually buy the stuff and wear it. The usual thing is that the real-life consumer turns out to be older than the collection s muse: Luxury fashion is expensive, after all, and the women with the resources to afford it have generally put a few birthdays behind them. So it came as something of a surprise to Alexander Lewis when he found out recently that the fan base for his three-year-old brand skewed younger than he d foreseen.
The discovery seemed like a good excuse to throw a party. Though there were plenty of looks in Lewis latest collection that would appeal to women of the grown-up variety, the emphasis was on pieces with a fun-loving, youthful tone. To wit: a flirty kick-pleated skirt in multicolor striped jacquard, or the slouchy button-downs and tees, likewise striped, that Lewis covered in sequins.
Sparkle and shine was a big theme for Lewis this season, but the through-line here was stripes—the disco-sequined clothes had the most punch, but it was the pieces in gold or silver-striped jacquard that stuck with you. A lean double-breasted coat in the gold was a standout, and, like the rest of the outerwear on offer, it boasted an appeal that cut across age. The same could be said for Lewis typically excellent knits, which don t look like much in pictures, frankly, but have a hand quality that makes them catnip on the racks. Lewis novelty sweaters have emerged as a key category for him, he pointed out at an appointment today; this time, he emblazoned them with the word "yalla," an Arabic term, common throughout the Middle East, that means, in essence, "Hurry up already, let s go." The word served as a fitting metonym for the energy in this punchy, concise collection: Alexander Lewis is seizing his momentum, and preparing to take off.
