Pringle creative director Clare Waight Keller has been tasked with bringing 200-plus years of history to bear on the present, and, as you might expect, that heritage is both a blessing and a burden. But she handles it well. This season, Keller found inspiration in swinging sixties-era Carnaby Street, best exemplified in close-fitting suiting (in traditional glen plaids, complete with narrow lapels and ticket pockets) and the archival silk patterns used as shirting. Tops were often layered over turtlenecks, a nod to the collection's other major influence, ski culture—also sixties. Not the most revolutionary reference points, sure, but subtle, luxurious details like the articulated stitching on the shoulders of a navy blazer added serious desirability points—even for non–Austin Powers wannabes. High-tech textiles, meanwhile, gave the clothes some currency, in particular a trench of a cotton-silk blend, which looked a little like velvet but was treated to be water- and stain-resistant. And Pringle would not be Pringle without a sweater story—after all, the house coined the term "knitwear" in the early 1900s—this time done in a longer staple yarn for a lighter effect.
