February 18, 2014

Tracy Reese Gives Us Lotsa Layers for Fall (and glitzy boots!)

By Kafi Drexel

I value Tracy Reese enormously and I admire the true imprint she’s made in fashion. Her feminine frocks and retro use of fabrics influenced a whole crop of designers and boutiques worldwide. When you pop into fashion mom-and-pops like Min-K in NoLita you can still see the influence. It’s all about really pretty stuff.

Pretty wasn’t as literal in Tracy Reese’s 2014 Fall Collection. There was a lot of layering that sometimes told the story of what would look like a poorly organized closet for consumers…but dynamite on the runway for models who can pull pretty much anything off. I’ve never tried to stuff black running socks into high-heeled clogs, but I’m pretty sure I’d look like a crazy person compared with a roster of professionals from Wilhelmina to IMG.

With this collection comes a mix of oversized sweaters, fringe, menswear silhouettes, gold and gunmetal, and trademark beaded slip dresses…aka lots of stuff you can layer and layer and layer. And it includes lots of stuff I want to wear (maybe that’s why the run of show reminded me a little bit of my custom closet when it needs a seasonal edit).

There were two big standouts. The use of black and white on outerwear…and the boots!!! Reese’s black-and-white checked coats and capes were show stoppers. Use of gold and rusty brown metallic boots with fringe were better than a unicorn sighting. That footwear supplied for JVR for Tracy Reese seriously made a lasting impression. I’m not sure if I can wait until next fall to jump into them. I. want. them. now.