Wei Lin and Mijia Zhang, the designers behind PH5, are quickly becoming known as go-to designers for innovative knits at affordable prices. Backstage, Zhang said her inspiration for fall came from a Japanese anime about living in a balloon. She further explored the idea of balloons and drew upon British artist Martin Creed’s balloon-filled exhibition for inspiration. The designers captured the balloons’ round shapes through curved hems and geometric patterns.
The collection had a whimsical charm and worked well against the giant weather balloon set created by Tom Palmer. Key looks included a rainbow-striped ribbed knit bodysuit, a lightweight mohair and wool needle-punch cardigan, a swirl-hem skirt with hammered grommets and a basket weave top and skirt with ribbon knit fringe to create movement in the wind. Lin and Zhang also showed a few pink and black geometric pattern pieces that were eco-friendly, made from recycled industrial materials. Overall, there were plenty of cool and interesting knits, especially the new multimedia knits, spliced knits with denim, knit and leather/vinyl insets, but some of the transparent pieces, such as sheer cropped pants, fell flat.