Sandy Liang is usually impressed by teams of girls who’re matching—deliberately or not. “They don’t notice how stunning they’re once they’re standing collectively,” Liang mentioned in her studio a number of days earlier than her spring runway presentation. She should have gotten a kick out of all of the individuals attending her present, coordinating of their Sandy Liang low-rise pleated skirts, taffeta clothes, and pointe-shoe flats.
In mild of the Baggu collaboration final month—which bought out so shortly that the equipment firm launched an apology on Instagram—and equally profitable launches of ballet flats and Salomon sneakers previously 12 months, it feels as if Liang is transcending her if-you-know-you-know standing. Her downtown-princess uniform has been so constant that it’s now immediately recognizable. The truth that it’s typically memed reinforces its cultural relevance. “That’s the web—they’ll take one thing and run with it, and also you don’t essentially get to resolve,” Liang mentioned, including that the fleece that made her well-known within the 2010s shouldn’t be on the forefront anymore, and he or she’s proud of that. “My imaginative and prescient of myself and the client’s imaginative and prescient of me are aligned for the primary time in a very long time,” she defined. “For some time it was this fleece, and folks considered me as a fleece designer. Which I perceive, however I’m proud of it now. I lastly really feel like I can truly seize two issues—don’t even look—after which put my hair in a braid.”
Definitely, the additions for spring 2024 will slot in simply advantageous. A picture Liang returned to again and again was of the character Cecilia Lisbon in The Virgin Suicides. The troubled teen wears an ill-fitting classic lace gown with sturdy dad sandals. (Is sensible, as for her marriage ceremony, Liang wore a customized gown and Merrells.) On the runway, when fashions weren’t sporting Liang ballet flats, they have been in Teva wedge sandals. Mermaidcore and Y2K additionally featured within the assortment by way of shell equipment, graphic tees, and one bedazzled miniskirt.
If there have been two gadgets that outline Liang’s assortment now the way in which the fleece used to, they’d be pleated skirts and bows. Each have been invigorated this season. The designer discovered herself drawn to a extra company, working royal imaginative and prescient of a princess, with prim jackets and coordinating (if not precisely matching) skirts. Fortunately, the skirts have been too mini or sheer or low-waisted for an precise state dinner. She additionally discovered a brand new technique to subvert expectations by way of a twinset in a sheer, sparkly cloth (an homage to Britney Spears’s “Poisonous”). As for the bows, Liang developed shoulder luggage that look from afar like only a large bow tied over the shoulder. These appear to be a success within the making.
The gathering closed with a bride in a mini sailor gown with an outsized collar, pleated skirt, and a couple of dozen bows on her individual. Raucous applause adopted, led by such front-row attendees as actors Lola Tung, Greta Lee, AnnaSophia Robb, and Rachel Sennott. Every thing felt proper, aligned, and—you might say—tied up in a bow.
