Stella McCartney has built joie de vivre into her brand DNA, so it only makes sense that she would reprise the surprise hit karaoke dance party from last season at her show today. This time the models sang George Michael’s “Faith,” “All You Need Is Love” by papa Paul and his fellow Beatles, and “Brujas” by Princess Nokia, which features the unforgettable lyrics “Don’t you fuck with my energy.”
McCartney knows a good thing when she hears one. Likewise, she has her design signatures and she sticks with them season after season. Savile Row–inflected tailoring? For Fall, it’s waist-conscious yet slightly oversize, and she likes the look of a bare-legged coatdress. Sexy athleticism? McCartney was putting tracksuits on her runways before it became standard practice, but if you’re in the market for a new one, she’s got it in surplus green covered with zips. Horseplay? Yep, that, too. A lifelong equestrian, McCartney used illustrations of horses in one of her Chloé collections and they reemerged today, only this time with a more upper-crusty vibe. A quilted barn jacket and silk scarf knotted just so below the chin gave us Claire Foy’s young Queen Elizabeth II in The Crown.
Her main idea for evening was to layer embroidered tulle shifts over short solid-colored knits or hardworking trousers. The surprise here was the retro conical bras she layered underneath sheer plissé evening pieces and added as a detail on everything from a camel jumpsuit to a short plaid shift. They’ll be divisive. But there’s no resisting the uplift of that closing sing-along.
