Telfar, the brand known for shunning labels and embracing the reimagined classic, gives a lesson in being on trend without giving in to gimmicks with its S/S 2017 collection. Neon has been everywhere this season from Sies Marjan’s silky, highlighter dresses to Hood By Air’s lemon double-sided biker boots. It’s pretty evident that we’ll be seeing a ton of brighter than the sun outfits come Spring, but no one has made neon look as effortless and inevitable as Telfar Clemens and his design team.
The collection opens with slouchy wide-leg pants and a short sleeve top with a structured neck in a matching orange. From here, we are eased into the quirky remixing of traditional prep that Telfar loves to experiment with. Reconstructed tops are a huge focus this season with the brand showcasing polos with collars hitched to the side worn over patterned button downs and many an open backed tank. Comfort was key from the waist down and many of the pants and shorts shown were either loose-fitting or rendered in a stretch material. Teardrop cutouts were prominent as well as pants that converted into shorts for a real early aughts throwback.
Even with some out-of-left-field details (a shirt with a handbag affixed on the front for example), everything is intensely wearable. Rather than trying to imagine a time in which someone would be able to wear what was coming down the runway, I found myself wanting to change into any one of the multicolored high-collared dresses that actually looked way more comfortable than what I had on. It’s difficult to produce something so wearable and yet so unexpected. A pistachio and gray striped, backless tank with orange trim doesn’t sound like something you can pull out for a casual Friday, but therein lies the brilliance of Telfar. You get something that is easy to wear that looks much more complex, the eternal sartorial struggle, solved.
Telfar makes life even easier by demonstrating how to properly mix neons with neutrals in a way that showcases both. The entire palette was selected from paint chips at Home Depot, an ode to the suburban staples that Telfar continuously reinvents. Between the ultra bright pieces, a few greyscale looks are shuffled in. This makes way for a melding of the two as a cerulean tracksuit is broken up by a black top layered over an orange polo. The use of neutrals as a buffer makes each piece seem even more accessible. “You can totally wear your black mock neck sweater vest under that!” Telfar’s motto holds true in their S/S ’17 collection: “It’s not for you, it’s for everyone.”
The show’s after-party followed at White Castle. It was presented by Material Vodka and Tiger. Jonte Moaning, Joey Labeija, Nita Aviance and Venus X and Telfar.
