In between his men s show two Saturdays ago and today, Olivier Rousteing was in London working on the campaign for his Balmain x H&M collection. He was still on a high this morning when he swept into the showroom to present his Resort offering. But it s not just the collaboration with the fast-fashion giant he s excited about. There s a New York Balmain store set to open in late 2015, and with sales rising, the brand is eyeing locations farther flung, like L.A.; Doha, Qatar; Dubai; and China.
The Resort lineup will look at once familiar and fresh to his growing global audience. Knitted suede dresses are lower-key, neutral-colored updates of colorful braided styles that first appeared on his Fall 14 runway. Not unlike his recent menswear collection, a good part of his new womenswear was rendered in earthy tones. The lace-front jumpsuit and dress looked like callbacks to Yves Saint Laurent s famous Saharienne. Elsewhere, he tried new things, like a graphic lace in the shape of coral branches that appeared on a strapless dress and fitted separates. Even more unexpected: the tiers of frills on a floor-length dress that almost qualified as romantic, and other ruffles that swished and spiraled down palazzo pants. Rousteing has been experimenting with flou lately, with somewhat mixed results. Fall s palazzos were a bit challenging. The ruffled ones here looked surprisingly right paired with a tough-chick, zip-front black leather bustier.
