As far as Marie Adam-Leenaerdt is concerned, nothing in fashion is sacred — not even the succession of seasons.
So for her on-schedule debut, her second show, the Belgian designer picked apart the idea of summer.
Her starting point was the familiar — a bathing suit, a tailored jacket but also a swimming pool or a changing cabin — on which she layered every trick in the design arsenal to ensure these deceptively simple pieces would go the extra mile.
Take a trenchcoat that could be buttoned three different ways, depending on whether you wanted to be bundled up or wear it long-and-loose. Or the swimsuit that came with a built-in cover-up that turned it into a dress with just a knot.
Further on, rectangular “swimming pool” dresses, with their wavy impressions of sunlight on water, were filled with inside belts and loops to adjust their shape to the occasion and mood.
Those were the pieces that proved Adam-Leenardt had done all the thinking to make sure each could become a no-brainer choice — even if that cabin-turned-cape-dress may not be on regular rotation for most.
“It’s about always keeping to the idea of a piece lasting through trends, generations, time,” she said. “It’s whoever buys that piece of clothing that is building their own collection.”
Paired with witty asides such as a triple-frame bag that was her take on “adding to one’s wardrobe,” her delivery was pitch perfect for a sun-drenched start to Paris Fashion Week.
