What is it with Russia-based designers and woodland creatures? Ulyana Sergeenko's Spring Couture dresses came with hand-enameled buttons featuring birds and squirrels. Vika Gazinskaya put stuffed-animal stoles in the collection she showed in Paris earlier this month. And now A.W.A.K.E.'s Natalia Alaverdian, who is Armenian and whose debut featured giraffe prints, has devoted her sophomore outing to sheep. Three-dimensional sheep heads, complete with curling horns, decorated chunky turtlenecks, the hems of knit skirts, and a cabled sweater dress that looks like it will have a busy season with magazine stylists. Alaverdian is the fashion director for Harper's Bazaar Russia, so she has a flair for editorial clothes.
There was more where the sheep came from. Japanese samurai and the Scottish Highlands were two other points of reference. When they came together, as they did on a fitted red blazer with a snap-closure lapel and a full tartan skirt quilted to sleeping-bag thickness, the results became almost costumey. That's another thing Alaverdian has in common with Sergeenko, who bases her collections on fairy tales and American historical dramas like Gone With the Wind. Only the bravest of the street-style set will wear these clothes as they've been photographed in the A.W.A.K.E. lookbook. By no means are we discouraging Alaverdian's adventurous streak. Her taste for bold experiment is what will put her on the map. Still, her first collection had much more real-world promise. Going forward, she'll have to find a happier medium.
