Clothes That Celebrate the Elegance of Your Inner Weirdo

New York Times

5 days ago

When Phoebe Philo, the much-celebrated designer of Chloé and Celine, returned to fashion in 2023 after almost six years away, she did so on her own terms: without shows, stores or influencers but with a sense of what she thought some women, though definitely not all women, might want to wear.
She called her designs 'Collection A' and talked about the desire for seasons to build on one another rather than replace one another. She seemed to be feeling her way toward something in public view.
Now, about two years and, as of Tuesday, four collections into the experiment of a famous designer going out on her own after decades in the safety of big brands, that 'something' is adding up. And not just to attitude, though they have a lot of that.
Imagine grown-up clothes with an insouciant practicality that celebrate your inner weirdo. It's a pretty compelling combination — just messy enough, with some purposefully rough edges. If you were a world-class poker player, this is what you might wear.
The line has its own identifiable, idiosyncratic vocabulary: oversize pants that seem to drip off the hips (even when they actually don't); big, button-down shirts and big, mannish blazers with oddly feminine curves; asymmetric tops that combine the ease of a T-shirt with trains that trail down the side of a leg; slick leathers and enormous shearlings; a wacko shoe. Each collection offers a variant on the theme, with a surprise or two tossed in. Collection D, which was just revealed and will be available to buy in early 2026, was no different.
What was new was the way standard utilitarian pieces were endowed with the drama of a couture silhouette. The sleeves of a cream trench had a ballroom curve, and a wool jacket came ribbed at the waist to create a peplum kick at the back — a sort of new New Look. A few tops had giant washed silk flounces at the hem that were stuffed with organza and then washed again, so they resembled collapsed petticoats.
There were the pieces that were actually two, or even three, in one.
A crisp button-up shirt, for example, had a detachable collar and cuffs so it could look classically pulled together or architecturally minimal or morning-after undone. A suit jacket could be worn double-breasted, so it pulls in at the waist, or single-breasted, so it hangs with a bit of a swing. A black and white short-sleeve T-shirt with a sweeping train was reversible, and the train could be worn down with a pair of tuxedo trousers or tossed over one shoulder, like a scarf.
The looks do what the best fashion does, which is solve a problem. (In this case, how to go from work to black tie without having to change in the office bathroom like Superman. Just drop the train and go.) It's also economic, which, given the fact that the prices are in line with those of other high-fashion brands, is no small thing.
On its own those ideas are notable enough, but then there's the … wait, what?
Is that an ivory shearling bikini bottom, like something Wilma Flintstone would wear to a christening? Does that tabby-striped chenille onesie really come with its own matching chenille hat with little pointy ears because … well, catsuit? And what about those sheer 'feather' pants that are actually silk and layered over a pair of sheer trousers with a higher boxer waist so it looks as if the top pants are about to slip off?
Hello, guys who walk around with their jeans falling down their butt and their Calvins exposed. She'll see you and raise you one.