Amid the chaos currently defining the resort/cruise/buy-now-wear-now/embargo grab bag of a fashion season, Cédric Charlier popped up on the New York schedule to show his spring collection — not pre-spring, although it was included in the lineup — at a rooftop runway show in midtown Manhattan Tuesday evening. Charlier, who is part of Aeffe and has traditionally shown in Paris, is experimenting with a new strategy that entails presenting just two collections with three deliveries each twice a year.
The spring collection, romanced by the city skyline and the sunset, was quite nice, a fine display of wearability and novelty delivered in a contrast of men’s wear tailoring decorated with smocking details and raw edges and sportily fluid dresses in strong acid tones. Of the latter, racerback tank dresses with light lemon and electric blue ruffles popped nicely against the lightly deconstructed, Prince of Wales and micro black-and-white houndstooth jackets and pants. Viewed up close, the fabric work — spongy knits, lightweight men’s wear materials and chiffon — was ultrafine.