“It was a collage of everything that we think is cool,” said Shane Gabier and Chris Peters about their spring collection backstage yesterday. It looked cool. Imagine a woman reminiscing about that crazy time when she lived in London in the early 90s, thrifting for little Rockabilly shirts, army jackets and dark Victorian dresses and mixing them all together with sneakers and messed-up hair. But imagine also that that woman has grown up a bit since then.
The collection was an ode to romantic dishevelment and eclecticism, but the clothes themselves were super elegant. Because this is Creatures, those little shirts came in shimmering silk velvet devore (in a wallpaper-like floral pattern), twill jean jackets were spangled with Swarovski crystal star-shaped patches, and a distressed effect on a navy floral wrap top was achieved by (presumably hours of) hand-fraying the cotton.
It was about “creating a new language out of discordant components,” the designers explained in their show notes. They referenced their own trips to London, they thought about 40s proto-punk style (the models wore fishnets, and hair stylist Anthony Turner’s dos made nods to doll-like bangs and rolls), and the duo also indulged their sneaker obsession. “Because I just think sneakers are cool,” said Chris.
Silk georgette track pants flowed over slip-on white linen running shoes that Shane and Chris created with hyper-technical cult brand APL. “We wanted to make them feel sleeker and more futuristic than just a chunky sneaker but we didn’t want them to be minimal,” Chris explained. “We approached them how we approach the ready-to-wear, thinking about really special materials,” Shane added.
Also in the mix: jewelry designed in collaboration with LA-based line Spinelli Kilcollin. Silver bangles were pushed halfway up the upper arm and chunky silver chains adorned wrists and necks. Like the clothes, these finishing touches were a little punk and a little 80s or 90s – they didn’t try to cling to any one narrative. As always, the designers’ alchemy relied on combining diverse elements to create something bigger — or cooler — than the sum of its parts. Oh yeah, and Micachu and the Shapes, currently in New York as they set off on their US tour, provided two new songs for the soundtrack. What could be cooler than that?
Related: Creatures of the Wind is the Comme des Garçons of the Prairie
Credits
Text Alice Newell-Hanson
Photography Jason Lloyd-Evans