When the time came to drum up the Joie Fall collection, Sarah Rutson said she and her team were just emerging from the inferno that was California a few months back. During a showroom interview, she recalled coasting up Mulholland Drive, heading to a brainstorming session and looking around her. It was all scorched earth, with flowers shooting up from desolation, blue skies and sunsets as only California can do them. By the time she parked, Fall’s story had taken form.
Cue an accessible, even comforting palette of neutral shades, spun out in blanket coats, snake print, and 1970s-inflected motifs flecked with gold. As a California brand par excellence, Joie has the luxury of sidestepping (or ignoring) anything that feels tricked out or otherwise contrived in favor of offering a loyal base legible pieces that are just trend-aware enough to get them where they want to be.
This season, those options include a three-quarter bronze dress with a flounced neckline, a checked pantsuit with easy tailoring and cropped flares, pretty pleated floral-print skirts and dresses, high-waisted jeans tailored like trousers with patch pockets in front, and cargos with satin-finish pockets that elevate casual just a notch. Rutson’s mantra for Joie is “nothing contrived—it has to be soft and useful.” That probably explains why the brand’s fortunes keep growing in the high double digits year after year.
West Coast sensibility or no, anyone who is interested in what’s happening on the fringes of high-ticket designer fashion would do well to keep an eye on what Rutson is doing these days. Her philosophy is pretty straightforward. One recent post: “Trends come and go. What keeps a woman relevant isn’t chasing them.”
