Apiece Apart's Laura Cramer and Starr Hout are poets of the practical. Although the premise of their brand is utterly utilitarian—with an avowed emphasis on well-made, non-trendy staples—the designers do find ways to romance their clothes. Their fitted twill pants were nothing to get too excited about—except that they had such a nice hand, and such a forgiving cut, that it wasn't a stretch to think that a lot of women would be very excited about them, indeed. (Lucky for those women, the pants come in various colors and fabrics.) But that was the practical end of things. Elsewhere, Hout and Cramer paid subtle homage to Pina Bausch and the look of her Tanztheater Wuppertal dancers in the Wim Wenders documentary Pina. Indolent slipdresses and camisole tops inspired by Bausch and co. had a dreamy quality.
There was a distinct sense of wanderlust in the collection's chunky, gaucho-inspired hand-knits, as well. Along with the handmade pieces, which were a new development this season, Hout and Cramer introduced a range of terrific superstructured stretch knits. A long stretch-knit dress with a boatneck collar and slits up each leg looked like the kind of thing one of Bausch's troupe members would slip on after a show—which speaks to the designers' talent for giving their seemingly simple clothes just enough telling detail to feel special. It's easy to overlook those small touches, but they matter, and the women who wear these clothes (again and again, and in various ways) will appreciate them.
