Following a trend this season, Josie Natori’s resort collection was a teaser to her upcoming spring line, where her inspiration touchstones will be more apparent. During a preview, she noted how spring will be about culture clash; here, there was just Morocco. It was fitting, though, for the season, which has connotations of travel and destination attire. Tile prints and embroidery seem apt for faraway lands.
But Natori sees the timing of the collection as the perfect bridge between getaway dressing and urban chic. She worked the balance by infusing easy daytime silhouettes with bright colors and novelty prints — a tilework print on a great burgundy shirtdress, a souk embroidery print on an asymmetric teal number. A solid teal shirtdress could work equally well for office or yacht. She expressed her signature craftsmanship through actual embroidery with lace that mirrored the pattern of the prints, seen all over a tailored coat or more subtly on the hem of an elegant black dress she wore to this year’s CFDA awards. Other items balancing elegance and a playful spirit included blouses and shirting with ballooning sleeves, a little black dress with broken asymmetric skirt, and a chic minimally pebbled white suit.