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NEW YORK, United States — Kate and Laura Mulleavy had to go to a galaxy far, far away to bring their Rodarte collection back to planet earth. For the past few seasons the sister designers have given the fashion world some seriously sartorially challenging collections to decipher. But with their Autumn/Winter 2014 show they were able to realign their unique world view to produce garments that actually looked sellable.
Even before the Star Wars inspired finale, this collection was heading in a whimsically winning direction. The opening shimmering pastel smocking dresses, worn by glitter-lipped models, had a girlish charm and would look perfect on front row guest Dakota Fanning. The same could also be said of the muddy-hued hunter’s plaid outerwear that briefly popped up on the catwalk.
The designers clearly embraced the quirkiest aspects of '70s fashion with this show. Reveling in the kooky charm of a hand knit crochet tank top worn over a grey turtleneck and paired with pleat fronted, high waisted drawstring pants. Their glossy glitter coats, which brought to mind the look and texture of custom '70s bowling balls, are sure to be fodder for the concrete catwalk outside the shows next season. And the layered lurex ensembles, worn with matching shimmering berets, looked like pieces that could be worn in a futuristic version of Bonnie and Clyde.
After a quick passage of embroidered dresses that appeared to be sparkling updates of Renaissance fair ensembles, the designer duo finally sent out their “it gowns”: five evening dresses with the skirts worked in prints of iconic images from the most famous film to come out of the '70s — Star Wars.
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“The movie is so beautiful that we thought it would be interesting to see it in a still,” said Kate Mulleavy after the show.
And right she was. Who knew the Death Star or the moons of Endor would make such a beautiful backdrop to an evening gown, let alone C-3PO or Luke Skywalker? But that is why the distinctive vision of the Mulleavy sisters is such a necessity in this industry. They continue to find beauty in all sorts of unexpected places.
Or to paraphrase Yoda, “the Force is strong with these two.”
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