NewYork fashion weekNEW YORK, February 16, 2010

By Meenal Mistry

Today was Sophie Théallet's first show since winning the big CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund purse. Ever the prudent design veteran, she explained a week ago in her Brooklyn studio, "I make wise choices. It's not going to change tomorrow." What is wise, of course, is funneling some of that cash into luxe fabrics and new categories. That's what Théallet did today in a collection that was appropriately inspired by fairy tales and recapturing the magic in fashion.

There was a continuation of the bohemian gypsy trip she started last Fall, though now it was laced with a seventies-era louche-ness. Those gorgeously gathered dirndl dresses—some in a delicate French floral cotton that is apparently très cher—were finished with mussed hair and slouchy, tasseled suede boots.

Théallet has always been dress-focused, and still is: This wasn't exactly a collection to ward off the wintry mix. But there was also her first round of lovely knitwear, lightly pointelled and ribbed, which sweetly coordinated with the berries and blues of her frocks. Warmer still were belted shearlings that threw off some of their rustic connotations with the chic flare of a peplum back. It's details like this that highlight Théallet's chops and put her ahead of the pack, as does the fine-tuning of creating an off-the-shoulder charmeuse dress that falls just so. "It's the simplest things that are the hardest," she said. But sometimes it's also the tall orders. One of the few problematic looks—a satin gown with bows trussing up its waist and sleeves—was part of a series of dresses based on a story where a girl asks for dresses the color of the moon and the sky.

Fashion Brand: Sophie Theallet | www.sophietheallet.com

Those gorgeously gathered dirndl dresses—some in a delicate French floral cotton that is apparently très cher—were finished with mussed hair and slouchy, tasseled suede boots.