Kym Ellery called this collection Chapter Two as a continuation of what she presented on the Haute Couture calendar back in January. From a showroom in the heart of Paris, she noted how staggering her Fall lineup and bypassing the ready-to-wear schedule “creates more time,” which matters now that she is increasing French workmanship and rethinking her sales strategy. Fair enough. What made less sense, at least initially, was the sight of several full-length dresses hanging lifeless on racks when they could have been worn down the runway, especially given that haute couture encourages dialed-up drama. As Ellery explained it, that offering was intended to project a “more approachable” vision of made-to-order clothes that girls like her would consider buying and wearing. “I wanted to show the process and artisans rather than be super-gown-y,” she said.
And yet, if the Ellery girl has the means to splurge on couture jackets, her lifestyle likely requires a gown or two. In contrast to her characteristically ample volumes, these options were bias-cut and body grazing (as proof, she used the word lithe over and over again). They came in sophisticated black velvet, a showier metallic devoré woodblock effect; and caramel, hot pink, or violet liquid lame that conjured up Cardi B channeling Old Hollywood.
In fact, Ellery said her muse was actually an art collector—the type of woman who would appreciate irregular, shell-type buttons, gradient metal spangles, and pearl beads outlining the breast. More broadly, she would gravitate toward a PVC trench with asymmetric detailing and classically tailored black pants with a removable waist ruffle because they were just left of classic. Ellery’s usual flair for flare yielded a black leather top with fluted sleeves and contrast stitching that gave off an easy allure, offsetting the extra effort that must have gone into the unnecessary double sleeves elsewhere. Up close, the quilting of a black dress and ivory cape revealed stitching in the shape of a vase and a face respectively—shapes that originated from abstract art source material, although the exact inspirations eluded her. Checkered velvet bell-bottoms shown with white pumps boasting a tortoiseshell-effect heel were a quirkier expression of her collector concept. Which brings us back to the dresses; Chapter Two’s standout looks hovered between cool/questionable taste in a way that was worth the wait.
