The Power of The Suit
Yes, Le Smoking is back— and no I don’t mean cigarettes. For any of you who are unfamiliar with Yves Saint Laurent’s work, Le Smoking is the first tuxedo made for a women and it’s popularity this season is unquestionable.
There’s many reasons as to why this power symbol for women is the biggest sought out trend and appearing in multiple designer collections. If you’re keeping up with the news you’re aware that women reproductive rights have been under attack. Alabama has banned abortions (in nearly all cases), while states such as Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, Mississippi, and Ohio have passed heartbeat bills. The government also defunded Planned Parenthood. Women are trying to reclaim their power back, and a lot of the time being self expressive is the best way to do that. Wearing a suit makes you feel powerful and designers are acknowledging this.
Ralph Lauren presented his Fall 2019 ready-to-wear collection at a one night only “Ralph’s Club”. The dress code was black tie, which wonderfully coordinated with his collection of stunning dresses and you guessed it, suits. Ralph’s Club had a 1920’s atmosphere with art-deco chandeliers and a jazz band playing classic hits in the background such as Frank Sinatra’s “Night and Day” (according to Vogue’s Runway). Lauren didn’t just stick to suit jackets and dress pants, he paired the looks with white collard shirts, bow ties, vests, and cummerbunds.
Deveaux is another brand that featured elegant suits. Their neutral Spring 2020 collection included plunging suit jackets paired with asymmetrical skirts, an earthy green plunging suit jacket worn with matching dress pants, and a nude suit jacket with white lapels matched with nude structured shorts. Andrea Tsao’s, head designer for Deveaux, suits are different from Lauren’s. While Lauren foucses on the classical approach and being inspired solely form menswear, Tsao isn’t afraid to mix it up. She makes the suit jacket silhouette feminine by creating a plunging effect and pairing it with a skirt or a short, which creates a contrasting look.
Area goes in a completely different direction than Ralph Lauren and Deveaux with their Spring 2020 ready-to-wear collection. Designers Beckett Fogg and Piotrek Panszczyk create collections with lamé and plenty of embellishments and their suits are no different. Area’s opening look was a white oversized suit jacket with chains and name plates reading Area (in English and other languages) paired with matching dress pants. The second suit look was a a mint green jacket worn as a dress, on the shoulders were bejeweled floral chain metal with diamanté fringe that cascaded down the sides. And finally Area included a mint fitted suit jacket cinched at the waist with a gold chain metal belt that had fringe which grazed the ground and paired with matching mint pants.
Whether your going for a classic menswear look, a modern minimalistic approach, or an over-the-top chain metal extravaganza you’ll be a woman in power while wearing a suit.