Ready-to-wear is an interesting concept. Predicated on the idea that the items will be off-the-rack, available to Joe Public, the term is imbued with a sense of mainstream culture and accessibility.
When you look at shows like Oscar De La Renta's and Delpozo's frothy tulle evening gowns, however, it's hard to imagine Jane Doe nabbing one off a sales rack in your own part of town.
Arguably, no show was less about accessibility than Ralph Lauren's this season, which was evocative of America's uppermost echelon elite.
He conjured all the glitz and glamour of the NYC socialite scene, nodding to several eras of black tie dressing and adding only a small whisper of general wearability with his tweed and houndstooth looks. Though still, as tweed and houndstooth go, they're an old-money fabric and not exactly a go-to for the empty of wallet or those who work in a downtown loft conversion.
'It was quite funny though,' says Anne-Marie Curtis, ELLE's Editor-In-Chief who was in attendance, 'because he had [the show] in his garage. The chicest garage you've ever been in of course.'
'So that juxtaposition was perfect, it was very funny. It was high-level glamour, but literally a couture car showroom. And all his cars were there, every single car you could imagine. It was about being in Ralph's world.'
'That's what he's so good at,' Anne-Marie continues, 'He sort of reflects back this perfect image of America and especially at the moment, with America not being like that it was, it's almost more beguiling and kind of seductive, because this glamour is the American dream. And that's what he's brilliant at – creating this dream that people want to be part of. '
'It just felt very special, and Ralph came out in a boiler suit, Diane Keaton kissed him, it was a total love fest of New York's finest,' Anne-Marie concludes.
