Elie Saab and his team are delivering profiles in perseverance along with their latest pre-fall collection. Last year, in the midst of the pandemic, the designer lost his home and atelier in the tragic Beirut explosion, yet the brand carries on, and glamour, as always, prevails.
In this collection Saab, famed for his embellished evening dresses, focused on day-to-evening wear—after a fashion. Some women might find his 9-to-5 looks appropriate for after dark. Casual, however, has never described the Saab client.
The designer chose the 1970s as his inspiration. It was an era, he wrote in an email, in which “I became more sensitive to the beauty around me.”The decade makes its mark here in the form of checked suits, camel capes, and a ruffled, disco-ready jumpsuit. These unexpected pieces stand out and apart from the more expected fancier evening looks, which are more scattershot. Perhaps it’s because they have a narrative that’s related to an era-specific silhouette rather than a fabric treatment or embellishment. We’re all for more of that.
