Ece Ege designed her fall collection as a continuation of the strict masculine tailoring discourse she proposed for pre-fall; a sharp silhouette is what she favors, rarely wavering from it. Defining her cutting technique as precise is an understatement. Every piece has contours so neat and immaculate, it is as if it were almost bidimensional—like in a paper doll’s wardrobe. Actually, the template of her signature short dresses—a fitted bodice blooming into a corolla miniskirt—comes from her drawings as a little girl, when she obsessively sketched her primary school’s uniform.
Black is a current fashion obsession, proposed in many collections this season. Ege has always used it in abundance, as a choice underpinning her design’s sculptural quality. While being defined as the absence of color, black gives out a powerful, authoritative vibe that resonates with the designer’s approach. It’s also required for all other colors to have depth and variation of hues. Playing on that note, Ege worked on a contrasting palette, having bold brights—emerald, sunshine yellow, turquoise, and fuchsia—set off in all their splendor against a pitch-black background.
While pre-fall was mainly focused on daywear, here, the scope narrowed on occasion dressing. Shapes were kept accurate and architectural, rendered in precious taffeta, gazar, and shiny duchesse; however, the designer indulged her Turkish-heritage penchant for fabulous embellishments, tastefully done in black crystals on dark evening dresses. A black short evening number with a tight off-the-shoulder bodice and a doll-like flared skirt was entirely embroidered in sequins; it was demurely worn pinafore-style with a masculine crisp-poplin white shirt. It looked deceptively prim, as it was actually paired with embellished garter belts holding thigh-high matte black stockings in place. They were intended as a sort of “stretched-up masculine socks,” explained the designer. The look had a tongue-in-cheek elegance, embodying Ege’s idea of sensuality: Never reveal too much; do not flaunt your power of seduction. “I don’t do sexy,” she said. “I just hate the word.” She clearly isn’t keen on contributing to the objectification of women. Quite the contrary, her fashion sense seems to be rather appealing to women of character, strong enough to wear her sculptural pieces with confidence.
