Not every contemporary brand designer will tell you she’s obsessed with “textures, volumes, and traditional ways of making clothes.” In this price category—which has been so impacted by the dominance of fast fashion—designers are, more often than not, compelled strictly by trends, and the dominant trends of the moment are edgy and up-from-the-street. At 28, Jourden’s Anais Mak makes clothes for ingenues. Though she dresses in the frothy doll-like clothes she designs, after speaking with her, you wouldn’t mistake her for one. “There are rules you can follow to be a rebel, which I think is ironic,” she said. “Being a good girl requires more originality today.”
As promised, this was a collection with plenty of texture. Dresses and separates were made from two layers of lace: the first, a guipure in a graphic circle motif; and the second, a delicate yet overscale fishnet. Other pieces, like a top cropped above the midriff and an A-line mini, were constructed from lace dipped in silver paint. She called it “summer leather,” which is a savvy idea: Shellacked lace probably costs a good deal less than laser-cut leather. You’ll note that Mak’s good-girl clothes expose a fair amount of skin. She’s not entirely comfortable with the codes of proper femininity. In fact, she seems bent on tweaking them, though a one-shoulder crushed organza dress embroidered with tiny pink blossoms was inarguably sweet and pretty. The news here was Mak’s dip into tailoring, virgin territory for her. A double-breasted suit in plaid crushed velvet looked as easy as wearing pajamas.
