Practicality may not be a sexy word in fashion, but for resort—which needs to encapsulate cold-weather, holiday, and vacation dressing—Apiece Apart designers Starr Hout and Laura Cramer had pragmatism on the mind. “What really gets us going is a modern, mix-and-match support system,” said Hout. “A bed of neutrals was super-important to us—with hits of color.” Instead of avant-garde silhouettes or out-of-this-world concepts, they focused on subtle flourishes. “We did a lot of discovery around different fabrics that would elevate everyday basics,” said Cramer.
An easy, wearable sensibility is always present here. For resort, the emphasis was on refined separates that could transition from day to night, including the pretty floral sundresses inspired by the Argentinian artist Patricia Iglesias Peco’s paintings. The knit sweaters were soft and extremely lightweight—as were the hand-washed Habitat button-up shirts, in hues like teal. “We played with a bright insurgence of color,” said Hout. There was also crisp suiting, made of textured, durable nubby fabric. “The hope is you keep wearing it again and again,” she said.
The duo also looked at sustainable innovation for resort. Particularly, they ramped up their assortment of sustainable denim pieces, with three different cuts of jeans made of organic and regenerative cotton. “People email us all the time and say, ‘I’m trying to track this one pair of jeans down on resale sites,'’’ said Cramer. They were produced at Saitex, a sustainable factory in L.A. “It’s amazing,” said the designer. “They have a closed loop water system, and it recycles 98 percent of the water used in production.” Also innovative were the breezy maxi dresses made of silk that’s harvested from the wild. Farm to table? More like farm-to-fashion.
