The KLS gal is on the move. This season, Kimora Lee Simmons set out to give her All American dreamgirls a touch of the old wanderlust, and demonstrated that spirit by mixing together classic sportswear elements with suggestively bohemian details. A touch of raffia texture, wildcat prints, dollops of feather and fringe. Simmons used her embellishments judiciously, and they did the work they were meant to: The collection as a whole conveyed the sensibility of a well-heeled woman who’s magpied her way through more than a few exotic locales.
The sense of movement also applied to Simmons’s silhouettes. Though she didn’t entirely eschew her signature pencil shapes, Simmons put more emphasis on looks that had a new feeling of spontaneity and fluidity. Pretty flutter-sleeve silk dresses made the point most clearly, but there was also a likeable quality of looseness in the several looks that featured vigorous twisting and/or draping. A mixed leather and seersucker stripe cotton dress was a matter-of-fact standout: The draped skirt and twisted top of the dress introduced some softness to that trademark KLS pencil silhouette. Dressy shorts and easygoing A-line frocks underscored the collection’s breezy tone. It was nice to see the KLS girl in such a playful mood.
