Florals for spring certainly aren't a groundbreaking concept—Lela Rose even admitted as much during a preview of her latest collection. However, the designer attempted to give them a new perspective, drawing inspiration from botanical photographs by artists Joe Horner and Azuma Makato.
“I went to this guy's studio in Japan and, my God, he's a genius,” he said of Makato. “He Freezes flowers, sends them to heaven and then photographs them. “They look a little blurry, so you're always trying to figure out what's going on in this explosion of color.”
Her palette was equally explosive and consisted of yellow, fuchsia, lavender and tangerine. The latter two were worn on a pair of square-necked guipure lace blouses and matching straight-cut skirts that hit just above the knee. It was a fresh look with a '90s feel, new for the designer prone to minis or maxis. “My eyes are still adjusting to this,” he said.
Rose has been experimenting with two-piece dresses lately, highlighted by a warp-print floral circle skirt and an icy blue crepe de chine crop top. She chose this look for the cocktail party co-hosted by stylist Kate Young that took place in lieu of a runway presentation. Models like Pat Cleveland and Joyjah Estrada were present, but they weren't there to model per se. They were there to blend in, with the style of her spring line. “We wanted to set the stage and say that you're playing a role in it,” Rose explained.
Most of them stuck to their feminine style, but here were some more interesting options to choose from. The same floral print used for Rose's look also came in a jacquard fabric so warped it looked like a leopard, giving the strapless dress added va-va-voom. Elsewhere, button-down trench dresses in varying shades of khaki had a surprisingly militaristic feel.
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