Nicolas Ghesquière will present his first collection for Louis Vuitton at the Fall shows in Paris come early March. The label presented the Pre-Fall lineup, produced by the in-house design team, here in New York. The collection married whimsy with a nod to chic practicality. On the one hand, there were chunky sweaters stitched with giant sequined logos, graffiti print dresses, and bold furs intarsia'd with the brand's famous LV initials. On the other, there were new interpretations of the suit. But the team had their fun with these, as well, mismatching colors and embellishing jackets with crystals and fur. A tweed and green leather bomber and miniskirt had a lot of cheek, as did the logo-stamped, over-the-knee boots they were paired with.
That sense of play extended into the Icons range of more casual items. Designed for travel, most of the outerwear pieces, including the great-looking shearlings, were reversible. Pants zipped off into Bermudas and sweaters became sleeveless vests. Also fun: camouflage-patterned knitwear and embossed leather and fur moon boots.
