“This collection is about combining the elements,” said Kolor’s Junichi Abe of Fall. “Traditional, elegant things with a teenager’s spirit and feelings.” So many designers are recalling engrams or moments from their formative years, and it’s not just in the vein of standard periodic references (the nostalgia goes deeper than just saying, for example, “the ’60s”). There’s a widespread investment of more personality and experience, and in turn, more questions and insecurities and vulnerabilities—all good things, as present company feels—suggested in the outcome. This verve of applied wistfulness has made for some really excellent clothing, and Kolor was no exception.
Abe highlighted blazers that were too big—but so big that he thought they might be turned into outerwear, sleeves rolled up (there’s that notion of tradition hybridizing with something adolescent, of needing time to be grown into). Another standout series was his patched duffle coats. Extra large and charming in their color-blocked coziness, they felt collegiate and grandfatherly in tandem. “It is that—traditional and sporty. Not matching. Normally people think, ‘It’s not good, these things won’t go together.’ But I wanted to find solutions,” said Abe. And so he did.
