For her Fall 2012 collection, Lela Rose cited as her inspiration Santiago Calatrava’s Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge in Dallas. The bridge’s soaring arches, clean lines and floating-on-air make it at once sharp and ethereal, a sensibility that Rose infused throughout her collection. Crisp tailored coats and strong geometric prints mixed with floaty skirts for looks that mimic Calatrava’s curvilinear architecture, in a muted palate of rust, mustard and grey that seemed like a nod to the bridge’s Southwestern locale. The combination of lines and curves made for flattering proportions that looked streamlined without losing an ounce of femininity.
The show’s opening look (left) was a standout, mixing prints and shapes to masterful effect by layering a bold chevron print over a demure checked skirt and under sharp collarless coat. Rose’s aesthetic worked best, however, in her cocktail attire, like in an silk ivory dress with embellished shoulders, or with this party-ready silk gazar V-neck number (center). In later looks, the designer tried her hand at this year’s ever-present peplum trend (although I’d have to give this season’s “best peplum” award to Prabal). The look fell rather flat on sleeveless geometric blouses, but worked beautifully on a pomegranate brushed fil coupé tiered dress (right). The whole collection, like the bridge itself, felt at once functional and romantic–totally wearable for the girl who wants to add a little architectural edge without losing touch with her feminine side.
Watching from the front row was ex-assistant to Rachel Zoe (and newly minted reality star) Brad Goreski, chatting up model Camilla Alves and Pretty Little Liars’ Shay Mitchell. Further left sat Ken Downing, president of Neiman Marcus, and former First Daughter Jenna Bush-Hager. Each guest was treated to a gift bag that included makeup used in the show, like sparkly gold Stila eyeliner and dusky pink Essie nail polish. The models’ hair, styled by blowout king Ted Gibson, was sculpted into a sideswept French braid. Like the clothes themselves, it looked at once architectural and softly romantic.