If French lace and French stripes are two things that you immediately associate with French fashion, then Alexis Mabille’s Spring collection, titled Paris Blossom, might play nicely into your French fantasies. Anyone who spends time here as the trees are in bloom can confirm that this is when the city is at peak pretty; it seemed that the designer was aiming for this level, as well. He rightly noted how a masculine shirting influence became essential to balancing his liberal use of saccharine pink, frills, and flounces. But even when reimagining business-blue stripes, Mabille still offset them with lace and coaxed them into girly bell skirts. “I wanted the lightness, the freshness,” he said, listing cotton voile, pleated silk, and poplin as the materials that got him there. Since no one would debate the airiness of a lace negligee, the breezy sundresses, pajama trousers, and trenches in technical faille were more convincing examples of everyday attire that could stand heat and AC alike.
The reduced range of eveningwear was duly noted now that Mabille has decided to save his dressiest looks for pre-collections. It’s too early to tell whether this is a smart strategy, but at least the boudoir aspect of several looks would take them into night. As for the exposed, colorful lingerie, he called up his pal Dita Von Teese, who supplied a sampling from her own namesake brand. Indeed, it wasn’t a stretch to conclude that Mabille was painting a portrait of a bourgeois gal eager to release her inner coquette. This cliché could conceivably win over non-Parisians, who would also see novelty in the embroidered Paris T-shirts. As for locals, extroverts might appreciate the perforated metallic imitation leather outerwear for transition temperature days; purists, meanwhile, might just take a pass.