Reed Krakoff RTW Spring 2014

Whether the “weightlessness” Reed Krakoff was feeling for spring had anything to do with his recent financial independence from Coach, he was in a light mood both sartorially and emotionally at his show. The designer sought “a direct approach to femininity, intersected with tenets of the brand.” Those would be sportiness, sharp tailoring and a graphic sensibility. True to his word, he opened with a shiny chiffon dress with a ruched bodice and a fluttery, asymmetric skirt, thus introducing his idea of overt femininity and the soft, near-colorless palette that dominated the collection. Color served as punctuation, with neon lighting up the cap toes and heels of mesh pumps, though one wished pigment played more than a supporting role. Light and pretty, if at times bland, the weightless romance benefited from an infusion of structure and sport. Precise skirts cut from bonded satin and spliced with sheer organdy panels gave the ethereal stuff a spine, while the languid tailoring of a white linen crepe jacket and fluid trousers felt genuinely effortless.