Text by Samantha Critchell, Associated Press
NEW YORK (AP) - Picture the gaggle of Pretty Young Things heading out on a Saturday night, wearing their happy smiles, sassy attitude and cute little Anna Sui dresses.
The dresses are short and bouncy, of course, some with beading, others with funky prints, and the mod glam ones are made of burnout velvet.
Sui always strives for the rocker-girlfriend vibe, with a preference for the 1960s. For the fall styles on the runway Wednesday, she brought together the graphic mod mood of London in that heyday and the ornate costumes of the Ballet Russes from 40 years before that.
Those two references collided at an exhibition at The Victoria Albert Museum, Sui explained in a pre-New York Fashion Week interview.
Check out pictures from the show and scroll down to keep reading!
The culture clash worked on the runway. To open the show, Sui sent out nine rapid-fire black-and-white outfits, including a fuzzy chenille herringbone and houndstooth dress, and a Deco-sequin embroidered tunic over an optic-print dress.
The schoolgirl looks, such as a navy mosaic jumper, and a tween-and-denim cargo-pocket miniskirt with a checkerboard cardigan, were wearable for the young as well as the young at heart, but the green maxi dress with a basket print and white collar was a little too costumey.
"You design for so many different levels - the customer, the salability, the trends and I always throw one in for myself," said Sui.
The styling of the show at the Mercedes-Benz Lincoln Center tents was spot on, with Erickson Beamon jewelry, sparkly tights and Mary Janes and chukka boots that are a new collaboration between Sui and Hush Puppies.