Despite their placement on the fashion calender, Lyell will not being showing this Spring 09. We discovered this yesterday when we requested a pre-fashion week video interview. A representative for Lyell told us that the brand will be showing in February but that the Spring show has been canceled. After news that Mayle (located just down the street from Lyell in Nolita) would be closing down, we couldn't help but feel nervous that the entire contemporary market was shattering before our very eyes. Brands bounce back, we know, and come fall perhaps everything will be just fine. After all, Lyell just got a nice little shoutout in Vogue's September shopping guide (alongside Balenciaga, Balmain, and Topshop) and their new store renovations have enlivened the recently delivered fall collection. A little secret to those who haven't visited the Lyell store; they're one of a handful of boutiques who keep like-new Ferragamo riding boots in stock. For that, among other things, we will stand behind the brand. Ferragamo's will do that to a girl.
Lyell's raw high-waisted denim shorts will change all that. We'll be the first to admit, at this stage in the game, these shorts are hard to come by. They're definitely sold out at the Lyell shop in New York. We spotted a size 4 in Williamsburg the other day, Satine has a size 8, and the rest, chicsters, is a matter of tracking them down. There's got to be a couple of size runs left in the world and we'll tell you right now--these shorts are the most flattering pair we've found, they're well worth the fight. Even hiked up way-above your belly button the inseam allows for coverage on your thighs (just say no to hot shorts) and the dark raw denim also make for a slimming silhouette. This makes sense because, as we know, a Lyell sort of girl is one who weighs just enough to be called 'slim' but not so little that she has to skip desert (i.e. many of us). Fletcher has used this same denim in a pair of wide leg jeans we've yet to road-test but, judging by similarities, we're guessing they're a thumbs up as well. Ladies, go get those last pairs. You can wear them on the Fourth of July. You can say you did it for America.
We popped into the Lyell shop yesterday afternoon and marveled at Emma Fletcher's delicate lacy-things. As usual the little silk blouses and dresses caught our eye from the street, drawing us in by hanging in perfect lines above the worn out black and white tile floor. This Spring 08, Fletcher decided to try her hand at rompers, though per her aesthetic, in the most delicate and tasteful way possible. The romper, that is, is worn as a layer (think lingerie/bodysuit) and blouses perfectly when paired with her high waist trousers and shorts. It's just about the sexiest thing to strip down to, should you find yourself running into a lake under moonlight. Or, you know, just hanging out in your apartment. Check our gallery with some Spring 08 look book shots and an e-commerce spread, below.
The National Arts Club in Gramercy was the perfect location for this season's Lyell runway show. The atmosphere was of cluttered, cultured, pipe-smoking wealth, and the A/W 08 collection complimented the haunted warmth of the space. Specifically, A/W included feminine bedroom clothes, wool coats with high collars, pristine fur hats, and delicate lace trim punctuated by thick stockings and vintage Ferragamo heels. It was a collection for a proper lady; one who knows when to sit with her hands in her lap, or smear on cherry red lipstick and go to the movies alone (was it to the movies she said she was going?).
We're backstage at Lyell right now at the National Arts Club in Gramercy. It's a beautiful old building with creaky wooden floors and haunting portraits of people that are not fashion designers or journalists. The models are stuffing their faces with pizza, as any good Lyell girl would, while the rest of the crew lines up the Ferragamo's and loiters around the stereo. This year, Lyell designer, Emma Fletcher, won an Ecco Domani award. Her designs are willowy and delicate, the kind of pieces that compliment starched trousers, porkpie hats, and wingtips.
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