Style
brand
We took the theme Destroy // Create quite literally for the Spring 2017 line. We liked the idea of using "destroy" words like smash, tear, and break as guides for the angular and sharp design lines seen throughout the collection. The Smash Tank is a great example of this - the mesh placed asymmetrically on one side seam of the tank finishes at a higher length than the rest of the tank and beautifully highlights the two fabrics coming together in one garment.
Again, we took a direct prompt from our concept of Destroy // Create in this area of the design process. We thought about rich purples and fiery pinks, cool ocean blues and calming, organic greens. The names reflect our story - Plum and Snap bring the heat, and Coast, Slate and Tide cool it down. There is an ease in this season's color story, the two opposing hot and cool color stories effortlessly complement each other. And I've talked about it before, Snap is a pink you do not mess with, but amazingly, Snap can mess + mix with almost every color in this line. My favorite is pairing Snap with Slate.
No. More. Extraneous. Purses. Carry your stuff on your body and be completely autonomous! Who knew that having the ability to carry all of your sh*t on your own person was such a feminist act? There's a lot of pockets in this line, ladies.
Here are some examples:
- Roga Dresses: The pockets are placed along the angular side seams of both of these dresses, so they're basically invisible until your hands disappear into the sides of your dress. You're wearing a dress made out of Roga fabric and you're magic.
- Pocket Jogger Knickers: I carried a headlamp in this side pocket for a 6 mile run recently, and the thing did not budge the entire time.
- New Roga Cap: Carry your cash, card, or key on your head! We also updated the cut and silhouette this season, so my massive head has never looked better.
- Lightning Layer: This little number is the most reflective thing you'll ever put on your body, and it's got a massive pocket sewn right into the hem.
A knit in pattern on a knit fabric is achieved with a process called Jaquard. It is a mechanism that controls the needles of a knitting machine, and allows for a pattern to be knit directly into the fabric. We have two of these fabrics in our Spring 2017 line: the Heather Grid jaquard knit, and the Arrow Mesh. We love this technique because the effect is both beautiful and highly functional. The dropped stitches that create the pattern of the of fabric also allows for optimal breathability in the garment. Check out the Cleo Tank, Kabuki Tank, Heather Grid Tank, and the Ziggy Tank as a few examples.
My favorite part about looking at what designers are sending down a runway is analyzing how they bring so many disparate design elements and concepts together to form a cohesive collection. (And when they fail at this- it's obvious too.) We think about this a lot at Oiselle. How will you as a consumer of our brand pair each season's tops and bottoms? What colors will pair well with others? What design elements will unify an outfit?
These questions were especially important as we decided create a small collection of apparel specifically for trail running. We started designing the Flyout Collection with a design problem that needed to be solved... how to make a split short without the crazy, high thigh split? So, we designed a side panel that echoes the function of a split leg to have 360 degree mobility, while still maintaining coverage where you need it. Then, we designed the Flyout Short Sleeve, Tank and Long Sleeve. We made a very intentional choice to have a side seam that echoed the Flyout Shorts on these tops. That's my favorite part about designing collections, making pieces that family together with consistent design elements.
- Oiselle Desginer, Nelle Horsley
