New York Fashion Week: At Rodarte, swashbucklers and sirens
Monterey tide pools and underwater worlds were on the minds of Rodarte designers Kate and Laura Mulleavy when they designed their spring collection shown Tuesday at New York Fashion Week.
Seaweed, sea anemones, shells and swirling puddles inspired handcrafted details and a palette of seafoam green, gray, peach, black and white.
The clothes were a marvel -- dresses of lace, macrame and net, sequins and shells, hand-painted and in some cases hand-burned so that the models looked like beautiful creatures from the deep.
But what distinguished this collection was that it was also grounded. Last season, Rodarte’s glitter coats were a star of the runways. And for spring, they followed them up with collectible canvas utility jackets with net, leather and sequin details on the sleeves and fronts.
They also showed denim -- high-waisted pants tucked into swashbuckling tall boots, and worn with ruffled silk blouses or rib knit sweaters. It was a good move. Especially being designers from Los Angeles, the Mulleavys should be showing denim.
Taken together, all the elements of this collection suggest a new maturity and merchandising savvy for the designers. There were the singular masterpieces, of course, including a trio of ungodly gorgeous finale gowns. But there was also denim, knitwear and things to wear every day, not just on the runway and red carpet.
