New York Fashion Week: Adam Selman plays with makeup and pearls
Designer and Rihanna collaborator Adam Selman, who had opted for a presentation format to show his first two collections, staged his first New York Fashion Week runway show at the Algus Greenspon Gallery in the West Village on Saturday.
The inspiration: Selman didn’t offer any definitive inspiration in his show notes, a T-shirt with a graphic print of spilled red nail polish, a recurring pattern that looked like makeup smudges, and lots and lots of pearl details made the collection feel like an homage to all the little touches of the feminine beauty regimen.
The look: The designer dialed back the flirty/sexy vibe from his first two collections -- but just a bit. Otherwise he strayed too far from his tough-yet-feminine athlete-meets-street story.
In addition to the familiar wide-legged trouser and cropped top silhouette, overall dresses, pajama-inspired tops and trapeze dresses we’ve come to expect from the line, there were a handful of dressier-looking pieces including a denim/tweed jean jacket and miniskirt combination.
Even pieces that wouldn’t otherwise feel the least bit dressy felt a shade more upscale thanks to an oyster farm’s worth of pearl embellishments, including a white T-shirt with allover pearl studding and denim shorts and shirts that used the tiny spheres to anchor parts of the garments to each other (described in the show notes as a “floating pearl detail”).
Key pieces: Our hands-down favorite pieces were a body-hugging minidress that appeared to be made completely of pearls and a trapeze dress with a ruffled hem and red swirls reminiscent of makeup smudges.
The scene: There is photographic evidence that Rihanna did show up for Selman’s first runway show -- though journalistic integrity compels us to admit we didn’t actually lay eyes on her at the time of the show. (We read she showed up just as the show was ending).
Verdict: With collections like this, not to mention Selman’s high-profile supporters -- it’s only a matter of time before the world is his oyster.
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