A funny thing has started happening at Marc Jacobs shows: Fans, content to sit and watch the big-name models strut by, jump to their feet to get a better glimpse (and a camera-phone pic) of the designer as he comes out for his bow. He's fashion's biggest superstar, no question, and he earned that reputation all over again this week with his fantastic signature collection. Under the circumstances, it's probably no surprise that his little-sister show, with its best-bits-from-the-vintage-store mentality, can be something of a letdown. But the Marc by Marc Jacobs line he presented for Spring today was one of his liveliest in a while. Maybe that's because he borrowed some of the details from his own recent oeuvre. To start with, the models all wore bunny bows in their hair, echoing Madonna's Vuitton getup at the Met ball, albeit on a smaller scale. Then there were the jackets and coats with the still-directional forties-by-way-of-the-eighties pinched shoulders. Fall's neons made a reappearance as well; the best of the bunch being a hot pink and caution orange striped dress with mismatched belt.
But not everything was reminiscent of Jacobs' previous collections. The African-inspired prints he used for easy, belted day dresses played into New York's burgeoning tribal trend. (Then again, all things tribal can arguably be traced back to the influential Spring 2009 Vuitton show.) Jacobs also showed a lot of jumpsuits—the cutest in sporty blue terrycloth. It's a look that a less confident designer might have avoided this season because of its recent runway ubiquity. Not him. Self-assurance is something Marc Jacobs has no shortage of.
