Half way through narrating her fall 2011 fashion presentation, former Spice Girl-turned-legitimate designer, Victoria Beckham, said, with a cheeky grin, “this feels like a proper fashion show”. Indeed it was. Beckham’s fifth collection to date was unveiled early Sunday morning with an intimate gathering at a town house on 63rd Street, which also doubles as a studio space when she’s in New York. Dressed in a sand-coloured sack dress (“This is the only thing in the new collection that fits me. I designed all of this before I knew I was pregnant”), Beckham sat in the front row—directly in front of me!—speaking at length about each look as it came out. Cocoons and wraps were introduced from the most luxurious cashmere silhouettes for day dresses to voluminous cotton and silk eveningwear.
There was a noticeable and refreshing absence of black, amidst the rich colour palette of deep magenta, merlot, vermillion, clay, kingfisher blue and saffron yellow. Among the highlights, the collection introduced the designer’s “100th dress”. “It was important for me to make my 100th dress one of my signature silhouettes. This dress (a saffron double crepe wrap collar fitted dress) represents not only where my original vision began, but also highlights the key elements of this season”, said Beckham. Each of the twenty-nine looks were accessorized with Christian Louboutin knee-boots, her first collaboration with the famed footwear designer.
Beckham easily charmed her guests with spot-on fashion references and her quirky sense of humour. “Yes, that’s Barbara Streisand,” she said referring to the music playing in the background, “I couldn’t help it. It just went so brilliantly with the room”. Classy. Elegant. Just like Beckham.
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