What do you do for Spring at a brand famous for its cashmeres? That s the question Jason Wu asked himself before unveiling his second capsule collection for TSE at Industria Superstudio. He wasn t short on answers. His most eye-catching proposal was an ivory sweater loosely woven from what looked like an oversize yarn. Turns out, it was a long strip of chiffon Wu twisted and sewed together and knit using massive needles fashioned from tubes he picked up at a hardware store. It s practically weightless. Another experiment: silk-screening khaki cotton with a digital paint print; the resulting sheath and coat looked almost like leather. Wu fans will be pleased to see fresh takes on the tailoring he s been working on in his signature collection, only rendered in TSE s specialty yarns. An elongated blazer in extra-fine merino wool is reason enough to visit a TSE boutique.
Like their guest star, TSE designers Dushane Noble and Jessica Groom had a lot of fun with fabric, judging by the looks they showed at today s presentation. Inspired by a book about the sculptures Picasso made from found objects, the duo knit a strapless dress with, from bottom to top, linen, silk, and a technical yarn, and fused that same linen to leather for a cool-looking jacket-cum-cardigan. And they, too, showed some great tailoring, including a spot-on yellow silk blouse and what could be the season s widest flares in a week full of them. All of which is to say, this season at least, TSE is about a whole lot more than cashmere.
