There is change afoot at Elie Saab. That’s meant quite literally. In a full decade of Saab’s ready-to-wear collections, never before have we witnessed a Wellington boot. In leather with metallic sequin embroidery, these weren’t exactly the rubber versions so popular at Glastonbury, but the implication is all the same: Saab has his eye on a new, younger kind of customer.
The shift began at his Spring show back in October. Lengths were shorter, stripes were sportier, Gigi and Kendall both walked. Here, the spirit wasn’t quite that exaggerated: Colors were a shade or two more muted, as is traditional chez Saab, and he traded the activewear references implicit in those stripes for a 1960s mod vibe, seen in little A-line shifts and tunic-and-flare combinations. We’d wager that this collection will be less of a stretch for Saab’s longtime clients—that is, except for those festival-ready Wellies. If those are a step too far, his ladies can opt for studded creepers with their lacy minidresses and all-in-ones. As for the girls who are just getting turned on to Saab’s confections, our guess is they’ll go for the trapeze-like proportions of a midi-length dress and the lacy macramé, slightly witchy layers of a deep-V number and a matching tie-neck coat.
