You can barely walk down the street in New York or open your Instagram feed without seeing one of Sea’s quilted coats. The pink-and-white and black-and-white wrap puffers are simply everywhere, beloved by real women and celebrities alike. Perhaps inspired by that success, Sea’s Monica Paolini and Sean Monahan are making an even bigger outerwear push with their fall 2022 collection. Wool belted pieces are topped with embroidered lace collars and hoods, ditsy floral nylon is cut into puffers, and upcycled denim is patched into an oversize bomber shape. The famous quilted coat now comes in a kaleidoscope of different patchwork materials; surely it’ll be the pièce de résistance of next winter.
But what’s underneath the coats is worthy too. Paolini has, like many of her designer peers, become obsessed with textures during the course of WFH life. She uses them in a way that is decidedly womanly, scrunching up cottons, fusing crochet with cotton, or adding quilted patches over her diaphanous dresses. The best look, though, must be a delicate pilssé ivory silk top and skirt, trimmed in fine white embroidery. Sea’s clothing is, traditionally, sturdy, noticeable stuff—dresses that could withstand a rainstorm or a sprint to the subway. While this new delicate little number isn’t practical for, say, walking down Canal Street where the brand has its store, it does show a new side of femininity and a new lightness for Paolini and Monahan. They’ve also translated the idea into printed pieces that flutter in the wind, with ruffles extending upwards from yokes or tiny cutouts on the bodices. Something tender feels like a new dimension for Sea—and a welcome one so long as they don’t lose their tough-girl core.
