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| Lisa Perry white silk crepe mini maxi dress |
Timed perfectly with the U.S Open, which is now winding down at Flushing Meadows, and in its final stages, the invitations to Lisa Perry’s Spring 2014 Collection were emblazoned with the words, “Tennis, Anyone?” and boasted a graphic tennis themed green and white background. While alas, this may not have proved inviting enough to woo tennis loving Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour (maybe she’s suffering tennis burnout after her good friend Roger Federer’s defeat the other night), it was nonetheless, a very appealing, fresh, pared down, collection, and it did woo the likes of Hamish Bowles, Simon Doonan, Amy Fine Collins, Stefano Tonchi, and Ruth Finley, among others.
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| Lisa Perry white lambskin pleated t strap mini dress |
Shown formally on models at Lisa’s sparkling all white Madison Avenue flagship (www.lisaperrystyle.com), it was, yes… entirely tennis themed, down to the fresh lime adorned lemonade served to guests, the bottles of Evian water lined up on the walls, the graphic green and white tennis inspired floors, and the oversized white vinyl (or were they patent) bags on the bleachers. Even Lisa herself was dressed in a white and green mod inspired shift dress. The runway show was comprised of 24 pieces, all in optic white (who says you can’t wear white after Labor Day?), and it was very much in keeping with Lisa’s signature aesthetic, which has always been rooted in the mod 60’s.
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| Lisa+Perry white silk cotton deep v neck mini dress with inverted side pleat |
The emphasis was on dresses in a variety of lengths (halters, minis, maxis and minis AND maxis). Some were pleated, some had mod circle cut outs, some were asymmetrical, and some had t backs. One had a ‘staggered’ hemline, and of course, there was the obligatory ‘wedding dress’ finale, in this case a floor length cotton pique halter gown. Silk crepe, knit pique, cotton pique, silk cotton, and lambskin, were the fabrics of choice. There were also textural cotton cable knits which showed up in the form of an oversized sweater dress, and as a sweater with a pleated chiffon skirt. Shoes were either a high heeled sandal in white patent with green straps, or a chic sporty white tennis shoe. By the way, I was seated next to W Magazine’s editor in chief Stefano Tonchi, and I asked him who he is most looking forward to seeing in New York. Without hesitation, he reeled off: Joseph Altuzarra, Proenza Schouler, Francisco Costa for Calvin Klein, hailing them as “true designers”. And then he quickly added Marc Jacobs, “pure fashion” as he put it.
– Marilyn Kirschner
