After her Elvis in Hawaii and urban cowgirl shows, Isabel Marant's new Fall collection was surprisingly simple, plain even. The look was built on layers of fine-gauge and ribbed knits in black, ivory, or navy, worn over minis so short you could barely call them skirts or over leggings. Not leather leggings, mind you, but the stretchy kind you roll out of bed in to go walk the dog or pick up your morning latte.
If the legwear seemed like an unlikely must-have, there were a few contenders here for waiting-list-only status. Nothing on the level of her wedge sneakers, but the wedge boots in ponyskin with Velcro straps will have customers whipping out the plastic. Stud-covered suede jackets and pelmet skirts, meanwhile, channeled the bohemian free-spiritedness that has made this designer's name synonymous with French cool the world over. On the other side of the coin, Marant showed some very smart tailoring in the form of structured coats borrowed from the boys and cool shearlings.
All in all, a mixed bag, though Marant is probably smart to try to stay one step ahead of her customer by trading in her popular Americana-inflected eclecticism for something more stripped-down.
