For creative director Jacob Park, this season was less about interpreting a general inspiration than designing for a particular woman. As a nod to what’s to come for fall, Park says the collection is for “the working girl who isn’t necessarily working in the corporate world but still has some kind of fashion sense.” That appeared to mean more experimental silhouettes in a wider range of fabrics, done in Öhlin/D’s brand of offbeat femininity.
Perhaps one of the lookbook images summed up Park’s fashion message best: pastel-tinged gingham and linen-denim fabrics, the latter a continuation from spring. Where spring featured only a handful of pieces in the linen-denim blend, pre-fall was a welcome explosion of dresses, tops and pants, many with frayed edges and playful hardware. Pants in this group were particularly great, featuring large front pleats that opened up with movement. Gingham helped to incorporate the brand’s affinity for pastel, made more youthful with scallop-like adornments. Other chic introductions included scoop necklines and feminine asymmetrical draping.
As a knit-centric brand, there were plenty of options. The brand has continued its partnerships with factories in Peru and Italy, this season also developing an experimental knit in Los Angeles with sheer accents for a dress and top that united the collection’s color story.