Sydney-based Willow is in the midst of a fast expansion back home, opening stores at a breakneck pace.
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Sydney-based Willow is in the midst of a fast expansion back home, opening stores at a breakneck pace.
Sydney-based Willow is in the midst of a fast expansion back home, opening stores at a breakneck pace. So there was something metaphorically fitting about the fact that the premise of Kit Willow's latest collection was the dot: You could think of it as a barely there point in space, but considered from another angle, it contains infinity.
That theme played itself out here in various ways: There were physical dots, both actual ones, on tulle, and extrapolated leopard spots and perforation; the collection also emphasized circular cutting, with material draped in great swathes. Willow got at the idea of shifting perspective with materials like holographic silver leather that bounced the eye around, and via garments that could be worn in multiple ways. In those instances, adaptability was mainly expressed through long straps, which could hang loose or wind around garments to change their silhouettes. The problem with that strategy, though, was that the straps were a distracting element unless, and until, they were put to use. The circular cutting worked better, resulting in some interesting asymmetric looks. Willow's emphasis this time out was on relaxed shapes, and pieces that could not only be adapted on their own but also mixed and layered in almost modular ways. Again, the theory was better than the practice, as all the diffuseness and changeability meant that no particularly strong proposition emerged through the collection as a whole. The designer also seemed to be hedging on whether she wanted to give her conceptual program its due, or create good commercial pieces. The more straightforward and commercial looks were the strongest here; an ensemble such as a sharp pair of tapered trousers and split bias-cut blouse might not have contained infinity, but it was focused like a point. Sometimes, that's enough.