Alice Roi (Q2603)
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Alice Roi is a fashion house from FMD.
| Language | Label | Description | Also known as |
|---|---|---|---|
| English | Alice Roi |
Alice Roi is a fashion house from FMD. |
Statements
For fall, Alice Roi cited the spunky children's-book heroine Madeline as her inspiration, but the schoolgirl who walked the runway was a darker version of the original 1930s merry mischief-maker. Show notes referred to such mental and physical misfortunes as "broken thoughts," night sweats, fractures, and sutures. Translation: A mix of the innocent (a toggle coat, Peter Pan collars, a shimmering floral brocade dress) and the subversive (bat-print silk tees, asymmetrically draped skirts, racy, second-skin knit minidresses). From all this, what will Roi's customer find to wear? Not the clunky wool layered skirts and yeti-like mohair pieces, which might in fact induce night sweats. More covetable were the windowpane trousers and a perfect, fluid, black silk dress with a metallic-trimmed ruffled flourish.
2 February 2007
The starting point for Alice Roi's spring collection wasLa Petite Voleuse(The Little Thief), a coming-of-age film directed by François Truffaut and starring Charlotte Gainsbourg. That movie was released in 1988, and the show's soundtrack (Black Flag, Smashing Pumpkins, Cake) and boxy, flared-shouldered silhouettes also referenced the late eighties/early nineties, a time when fashion was more bold than frilly. In other words, there was less emphasis than usual on the girly prettiness Roi fans have come to know. Familiar ruffle-sleeved blouses and pinafore-style dresses played supporting roles to tougher zip-front jumpers and skinny-legged pants, and one notable pair of bleached jeans. The resulting mix wasn't always on target. Roi described the collection as being a battle between "pretty, girly and more conceptual clothes, between hard and soft," but it's not hard to see where her heart lies. The pieces that stood out gently filtered prep looks through an eighties filter: a tee dress with a collegiate cardigan, a slouch jacket, a jumper over a blouse—all nick-able Roi staples.
8 September 2006
Cue the Violent Femmes, PiL, and the Misfits. Alice Roi is turning 30—that's practically middle-aged in this business of 14-year-old models andProject Runwayenfants terribles. And so she revisited the New York City of her youth with black lipstick, broken-down mary janes, and prep-school uniforms twisted to get past the bouncers on St. Marks. Yes, there were pinafore dresses and boiled-wool vests and wrap skirts, but they were offset with knit sweaters and leggings that looked like they'd been through the washing machine a few times. Party frocks, meanwhile, came punked up with patent leather accents. But if they were worn underneath one of her smart houndstooth coats, Mom and Dad would never be the wiser.
3 February 2006
As much as she’s a groovy downtown hipster, Alice Roi is entranced by the Watergate-era wasp wardrobe, with its proper proportions, clean lines and sporty allusions—somewhere between Tippi Hedren inThe Birdsand Sigourney Weaver inThe Ice Storm.Roi’s spring collection succeeded in bringing that demure esthetic firmly up to date. Her well-edited show included some brisk dresses and suits in low-key colors—grey, white, houndstooth check—cut from stiff fabrics that stood away from the body (a refreshing change in a week when most garments couldn’t get close enough to the female form). She showed sweetly sexy crocheted cardigans and dresses and some cozy, oversize velour hoodies. And after a rather abrupt group of shiny green and silver spandex bodysuits (scuba lessons at the country club, anyone?), the designer’s sexy little black cocktail dresses closed the evening on a high note.
20 September 2002
A search for security? A return to a safer time? A meeting at the Junior League? Alice Roi's Fall collection suggested all of these things and more.Roi's inspiration was "the days of the debutantes"—although she clearly wasn't thinking about gin-swilling Jazz Age nymphets; hers are a more sedate group who wear Ferragamo flats and buy investment clothes. Even when showing edgier ideas, Roi has always been a strong tailor, and this collection's simple lines showed off her skill. Palazzo pants hung perfectly off the models' hips, an ankle-length ivory velvet coat had just the right flare and a wool jersey dress skimmed the body without a hitch.The clothes did occasionally get a little too serious. A straightforward red cashmere knit dress would need to be worn with a lot of attitude—or by someone under 25—to avoid coming off as starchy, and some of the velvet pieces sat rather heavily. Roi's wit shone through, though, in the fuzzy ivory fisherman's knits: a shrunken hoody cardigan with poet sleeves, a halter dress, a sleeveless top. And the glitzy red-and-gold brocade pants worn with a skintight ivory top and red cashmere tank? Just the thing to bring out the bad girl trapped inside every well-behaved deb.
9 February 2002
For her fourth season, Alice Roi presented a pilgrim/Amish-themed show that proved her most mature and consistent collection to date.Trading her popular '80s-inspired bubblegum-girl silhouettes for long, fluid shapes, Roi opened with ankle-length dresses featuring grosgrain detailing at the wrists and waistline; the monastic effect was offset by thoroughly downtown, old-school Reebok boots. The designer stuck with neutral raw shades like pewter and oatmeal for her flowing country skirts and monkey-print frocks, but also ventured into city chic with fitted trousers, knockabout blazers and a couple of short scalloped lace dresses. Less interesting were the puff-sleeved Victorian shirts and flamenco-inspired tiered dresses, of which we saw plenty last season. Here, they felt gimmicky and derivative.Despite these occasional misfires, Roi's collection confirmed that she is a name to watch closely in the future.
8 September 2001
For her collection inspired by "educated virgins," Alice Roi combined dollhouse jewelry (made from real dollhouse furniture) and could-not-possibly-be-any-shorter minis. Her selection of the Honoré Daumier printLa Caricature(a drawing of two snobs turning up their noses at each other), which turned up on dresses and tops, exemplified her love of parody and play.Eighties references were on hand in a pair of Sebagos with heels, super-bright colors and asymmetries. But pervasive sailor styles, dropped waists, pleated skirts and leg-of-mutton sleeves referenced the early '20s. One standout was an almost preppy sweater with a sailing motif, worn with one straight and one puffy sleeve. And a black cashmere minidress with aLa Caricaturebanner would have made Coco Chanel proud.
10 February 2001
Alice Roi, 24, is a native New Yorker with degrees from New York University and Parsons School of Design in fine arts and fashion design. Although she has designed only four collections, Roi already has been tapped to consult with Anna Molinari for her Spring 2001 collection and is set to launch a line of shoes with the British luxury line Gina. Roi's Spring collection was a rocking tribute to the '80s in all of its glorious excess: Leggings, minis, bows, batwing sleeves and white stilettos (customized with graffiti and mini padlocks) were some of the looks that Roi revisited with ironic wit and humor.
16 September 2000