In the Showrooms: GUESS Fall 2014
Guess' newly installed Creative Director, Sharleen Ernster, has come out with both guns blazing (pun totally intended).
I didn't need prompting to see that there was an entirely different look in womens apparel. Vintage-looking cowboy boots stuffed with flowers were strategically placed around the showroom. In case that wasn't enough of a clue, a well-worn vintage saddle of wood and leather was draped with gold-toned jewelry and flanked by two horseshoes (below). It was all so authentically authentic that I asked if the cowboy boots were a part of the collection. They weren't. Bummer. Wouldn't it be cool if that were the case? It's been a very long while since true cowboy boots have been mainstream. But I digress...
The entire line was a mixture of western themes, floral motifs and city cool. An interesting feat to pull off I must say. Even more so when considering western themes can easily fall into the realm of camp. I admired that Ernster was able to do this by finding that perfect balance between accentuation and subtlety. For example, a traditional western yoke and pockets were used on the top half of a denim boiler suit (below), which happened to be my favorite piece. However, it wasn't so overpowering as to take away from the overall city girl look of it.
For guys, western was pretty much non-existant and wardrobe staples like button-downs and jeans were the norm. However, the sneakers were pretty amazing. The high-tops had that old school flat-footed shape that's pretty popular nowadays. There were quite a few styles that had me seriously considering crossing over to the mens department for kicks this fall.
View the rest of the fall preview after the jump...
