A few years ago, the only jeans you’d find in Nili Lotan’s collections were of the novelty variety, cut with a dropped crotch, wide leg, or buttons down the sides. She was better known for slip dresses, easy tailoring, and drapey separates then, but in 2021, her signatures have taken on a new mien. Jeans have become the anchor of her business, now in more timeless silhouettes like bootcut flares and high-rise stovepipes. Lotan’s interest this season is in what you can wear with them, from her best-selling cable-knits to statement jackets and plush shearlings.
On the latter note, fall’s highlight was a suede coat trimmed with Mongolian lamb, partly inspired by George Harrison’s style in the 1970s. The decade is Lotan’s baseline, namely because that’s when she was growing up and figuring out her style as a teenager in Tel Aviv. A cozy shearling vest styled over a printed blouse nodded to the ’70s, too, but the real surprise here was a groovy chocolate velour sweatsuit. We’re nearing the end of lockdown and #WFH, but now that we’ve accepted sweatpants and loungewear as “real clothes,” Lotan believes there’s no going back. She styled hers with heeled boots, not sneakers.
