Do you want to wear a dress over pants? Bassike co-founders Deborah Sams and Mary Lou Ryan would like it if you said yes. In the brand’s Pre-Fall lookbook, shirt dresses in blue, Tencel-made plaid, and ivory are layered over slim-cut trousers, giving the model an ascetic look. A baggy jumpsuit with a knotted strap is equally curious in a different way—more painter than priest. With a name that’s a homonym of basic, the 12-year-old Australian brand makes pieces that are surprisingly directional, especially when styled in this artily offhand way.
Don’t let this be a deterrent; if some looks read tricky, others are simply genius. Sams describes her design process as efficiency driven: “You don’t want to have to think about pairing things together.” As such, she’s considered cropping a black sweater to the exact spot where high-rise corduroy pants hit the waist. A leather bomber and pencil skirt worn together transform the wearer’s physique into that of an ’80s megababe, while a plaid suit pairs Wall Street shoulders with West Coast chill trousers. Her intention is that these could be clothes you don’t have to try too hard to coordinate—every Bassike piece evolves from and flows into another like a fashion puzzle. Fun, and occasionally challenging. In the end, these are comfortable clothes that require a certain amount of being comfortable in your own skin.
