Hellessy Resort 2020
“It’s all about this attitude,” Sylvie Millstein noted while talking through her resort lineup heavy on playful experimentation. “I wanted to stick to the DNA of the brand, which is downtown cool, feminine and sensual.” She blended textures and colors seamlessly onto silhouettes with touches of novelty. When you think of Hellessy, you think of fun yet wearable designs.
Trompe l’oeil and convertibility thus were the foundations for resort, ranging from the built-in bra straps of a seductive button-down shirt and knits with removable sleeves, to pants with detachable waist ties. “Pants are our number-one category,” she said, adding: “There’s nothing basic. Everything has a point of difference.” Nothing basic, indeed. She offered a pant-skirt hybrid in supple vegan leather and novelty denim with long ribbon attachments or built-in shirt tales. Those aforementioned detachable waist ties open the door for more selling opportunity, too, in what can be compared to interchangeable dickeys but for pants. “Who doesn’t want the option to wear differently now? It gives more of a reason to buy.”
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That playfulness transitioned easily into dress options. Millstein clearly had fun with the design process, offering charming youth in a voluminous bubble dress with feather stitch embroidery, or a similar trompe l’oeil quality in a flowy dress that looked knotted and tied up top. “I’m nonchalant about my designs,” she professed before showing drapey wide-leg jumpsuits in different fabrications. These were great propositions for new evening — featuring volume without the weight, luxe fabrications that felt relaxed — to round out a stylish range both casual and chic.
Launch Gallery: Hellessy Resort 2020
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