Lorenzo Serafini is a romantic at heart—he couldn’t design the delicate, feminine dresses Philosophy is known for if he weren’t. But romance for him rhymes with strength. “Being a modern romantic for me means having the confidence of not being afraid of your fragility,” he said. “It’s about embracing sensibility and sentiment. It makes you feel stronger.”
On his pre-fall mood board, images of late-’70s/early-’80s billowing floral dresses shot in the countryside were pinned with portraits of a young, natural-looking Isabella Rossellini. The collection captured a mood of spontaneous sensuality, together with the designer’s flair for whimsy. And what is sweeter than a micro-floral Liberty print? Serafini collaborated with the historic British house for a capsule collection, called Wild Flowers, with archival micro-floral prints gracing the lining of denim dungarees and oversize denim vests. The same prints looked charming on a long prairie dress in cotton etamine with a ruffled bib, Victorian puffy sleeves, and smocking. Jacqueline Durran, who designed the costumes for Little Women, might have asked Serafini to lend it for the movie. It would have looked lovely on any of the actresses, as would have a sumptuous white embroidered tulle ruffled number, inspired by a vintage Victorian wedding dress.
But romantic as he is, Serafini knows how to build a wardrobe for today, and daywear proposals were as convincing as Philosophy’s signature feminine frocks. A duffle coat in vegan shearling with unstructured Victorian-by-way-of-the-’80s sleeves felt soft to the touch; it looked cool paired with black vegan leather shorts. A trenchcoat in dry wool had a hint of the masculine, while contrasts played out in a chocolate brown patent leather pencil skirt worn with a crisp white linen blouse embroidered with precious Valenciennes lace. On the same note, smooth vegan leather was again put to good use in a brown day dress with feminine smocking details.
But it was eveningwear that stole the show this season. Serafini indulged his penchant for vintage glamour in a series of liquid, languid, ’30s-inspired dresses cut on the bias. In a delicate powder pink, shimmering silver, or black, they’d make any girl feel like a Hollywood star. Nothing wrong with that.
