If you’ve been following Cinq à Sept, you might recall that the label launched with Pre-Fall ’16. A full year and five collections have gone by since then, but the debut collection has actually only been available for a few months; Pre-Fall typically hits stores in June or July. That said, the brand’s reach is impressive. It is stocked in more than 300 stores. Perhaps that’s because the vision was crystal-clear from the very beginning: This is a nicely priced label that doesn’t just rehash trends or cater to 20-somethings. (Does the contemporary market need more off-the-shoulder tops? No, it does not.)
As founder Jane Siskin puts it, Cinq à Sept is “a new label without new-label problems.” She and her team have been working together for years, and their collections lack any rookie mistakes. Even when some pieces don’t hit the mark, you can’t argue that the quality, fit, and construction are top-notch. This season, Siskin envisioned the Cinq à Sept girl visiting her grandparents in Havana, Cuba, and discovering beautiful old clothes in their attic. A sweeping ruffled skirt looked fit for a night of salsa dancing, and an orchid-print silk blouse had charming jeweled buttons and a cummerbund-like silk band around the waist. Those vintage-y details are really where Cinq à Sept shines; they tie back to the label’s name, which translates to “five to seven” in French, as in the time between 5:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. when day becomes night and lovers typically meet for rendezvous. A striped-and-floral dress with a denim bustier layered on top didn’t look quite as easy and effortless as that description suggests; a better option for dusk in Havana (or New York or Paris) would be the cute wrap top and army-green pants with a fur stole tossed over the shoulders. The look was cool and laid-back, but with a specialness you can’t resist.
