Billy Reid (Q3902)
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Billy Reid is a fashion house from FMD.
| Language | Label | Description | Also known as |
|---|---|---|---|
| English | Billy Reid |
Billy Reid is a fashion house from FMD. |
Statements
creative director
The past months have been a time for reflection, and at Billy Reid a time to study the findings of a recent brand study. The results couldn’t have been a surprise; they revealed that his customer wants “sophisticated, understated, beautiful fabrics; unexpected details; and wearability.” The fall collection delivers on all of those fronts. It’s tightly edited, with a focus on tailoring.The womenswear collection was more coherent than it has sometimes been in the past. Structure feels right here and better connects women’s offerings with the men’s. A gray pantsuit was crisply elegant, while a mid-length shearling coat looked decadent. Ditto the moleskin pants for guys.Leather is one of Reid’s staples, but it doesn’t outshine the woven fabrics which have a suppleness all their own. There’s an interesting contrast between the slim fit of the coats and the tactile aspect of their fabric. Also conveying softness within the strictness of tailoring was a medium brown suit in cotton pincord. There were brushed coats, too, and Reid’s signature knitwear.As Reid went through the collection, he pointed out designs that had been in the collection for years—a peacoat, a leather moto, shirts—that customers never tire of. He also spoke wistfully of the hospitality aspect of the business that the pandemic prevents. But has the designer really put that aside? The job of a good host is to make people feel at home, and to anticipate their needs; feats Reid achieves in designs that might well be described as hospitable.
12 February 2021
The past months have been a time for reflection, and at Billy Reid a time to study the findings of a recent brand study. The results couldn’t have been a surprise; they revealed that his customer wants “sophisticated, understated, beautiful fabrics; unexpected details; and wearability.” The fall collection delivers on all of those fronts. It’s tightly edited, with a focus on tailoring.The womenswear collection was more coherent than it has sometimes been in the past. Structure feels right here and better connects women’s offerings with the men’s. A gray pantsuit was crisply elegant, while a mid-length shearling coat looked decadent. Ditto the moleskin pants for guys.Leather is one of Reid’s staples, but it doesn’t outshine the woven fabrics which have a suppleness all their own. There’s an interesting contrast between the slim fit of the coats and the tactile aspect of their fabric. Also conveying softness within the strictness of tailoring was a medium brown suit in cotton pincord. There were brushed coats too, and Reid’s signature knitwear.As Reid went through the collection, he pointed out designs that had been in the collection for years—a peacoat, a leather moto, shirts—that customers never tire of. He also spoke wistfully of the hospitality aspect of the business that the pandemic prevents. But has the designer really put that aside? The job of a good host is to make people feel at home, and to anticipate their needs, feats Reid achieves in designs that may well be described as hospitable.
11 February 2021
Billy Reid has moved a lot in the course of his career: first from his home state of Louisiana to Texas; then on to Los Angeles and New York City. Since 2001 he’s been happily settled inFlorence, Alabama. While designing his spring 2021 collection his thoughts drifted back to California, to the house he shared on Manhattan Beach, and also to the culture shock of having a new job and living in a new place.“I was kind of insecure when I got there,” Reid said on a Zoom call. “I talked a little different than everyone, my clothes were a little different.” By the time he left for the East Coast Reid was at peace with being different and doing things his own way—and that remains his M.O. today. Living all around the country, Reid mused, has left him with “a full perspective of what Americana can be.”For spring, Reid and team have given his customers a mostly “seasonless” collection. “We try to make things that definitely are going to last from a style perspective,” he said. One way they do it is by referencing the brand’s archive, revisiting and tweaking “hero” pieces, like a suede duster or a denim shirt. Making something like a men’s cardigan or a zero-waste woman’s caftan distinctively Reid is not so much about the silhouettes, but the materials they are made of. “We develop the textiles, so they’re ours and that creates a point of difference.”Even over Zoom it’s clear that the collection’s selling point is the hand of the fabrics. Also clear is that the menswear is bolder than the more staid womenswear pieces, which have a sort of one-size-fits-all feeling. A persimmon suit with a boxy fit gave the women’s offering a breath of fresh air, not to mention inspiration to move on from lockdown’s loungewear. Its equivalent on the men’s side was a pair of high-waisted trousers with an asymmetric closure. Whether teamed with a denim shirt or a crisp white tuxedo jacket (Reid opted for both), the pants had a bit of 1930s jauntiness: different, in the best way possible.
9 September 2020
Billy Reid has moved a lot in the course of his career: first from his home state of Louisiana to Texas; then on to Los Angeles and New York City. Since 2001 he’s been happily settled inFlorence, Alabama. While designing his spring 2021 collection his thoughts drifted back to California, to the house he shared on Manhattan Beach, and also to the culture shock of having a new job and living in a new place.“I was kind of insecure when I got there,” Reid said on a Zoom call. “I talked a little different than everyone, my clothes were a little different.” By the time he left for the east coast Reid was at peace with being different and doing things his own way—and that remains his M.O. today. Living all around the country, Reid mused, has left him with “a full perspective of what Americana can be.”For spring, Reid and team have given his customers a mostly “seasonless” collection. “We try to make things that definitely are going to last from a style perspective,” he said. One way they do it is by referencing the brand’s archive, revisiting and tweaking “hero” pieces, like a suede duster or a denim shirt. Making something like a men’s cardigan or a zero-waste woman’s caftan distinctively Reid is not so much about the silhouettes, but the materials they are made of. “We develop the textiles, so they’re ours and that creates a point of difference.”Even over Zoom it’s clear that the collection’s selling point is the hand of the fabrics. Also clear is that the menswear is bolder than the more staid womenswear pieces, which have a sort of one-size-fits-all feeling. A persimmon suit with a boxy fit gave the women’s offering a breath of fresh air, not to mention inspiration to move on from lockdown’s loungewear. Its equivalent on the men’s side was a pair of high-waisted trousers with an asymmetric closure. Whether teamed with a denim shirt or a crisp white tuxedo jacket (Reid opted for both), the pants had a bit of 1930s jauntiness: different, in the best way possible.
9 September 2020
Ask Billy Reid, who this year celebrates his 20th anniversary as a designer, about career milestones and he’s as likely to mention community and charity as he is his three CFDA award wins (including the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund of 2010), 12 stores nationwide, and too many to count celebrity dressing ops. He will also surely, in his signature drawl, expound on Shindig, his annual festival of music, food, and, of course, fashion in his hometown of Florence, Alabama, “a bastion of open-mindedness,” as he describes it. When it isn’t Shindig season, he’ll stage his collection—mostly men’s, but with a growing women’s category—during New York men’s week. That, however, was not the case for Spring 2019. One had to head south, as this reviewer did, to catch it in its natural setting.By now, Reid’s image—that of the down-home bon vivant, buttoned-up bumpkin, seersucker sophisticate—is well burnished. Over the years, he’s cultivated a hybrid American look all his own, characterized by slightly rumpled casual suits for him and loose tunic-based dresses for her, primarily in a country-approved palette of earth and water hues. Unusual, artisanal textile development is always paramount. For Spring, shown under colossal ceiling fans in a gutted downtown Florence space, a vibrant feather-printed caftan was the clear standout, inspired by Native American influences of the Florida panhandle. Reid also alluded to a suede duster, a burlap-looking netted sarong, and a gold chain-stitched dress—already sold out, he said—as favorites. As for gents, a knitted navy suit and a translucent trench count as standouts. Luxurious bags and totes were crafted in a family-run factory in Tennessee, while sneakers worn by every model—all of them friends or employees of the label—were made from wild alligator, as part of a sustained-use, zero-waste management program with the state of Louisiana. Later, Reid spoke of his ongoing mission to use locally grown organic cotton, essentially taking it from field to rack, to supplement the Italian, French, and Japanese fabrics he currently sources.If conveying a sense of authenticity is the goal of Shindig, and certainly it is, perhaps nothing served up more of the stuff than a live set by Candi Staton, famed soul singer (who also had a disco hit with “Young Hearts Run Free”), as the show’s musical backdrop.
Her backup band, David Hood and the Swampers, are equally famed in these parts, having produced or performed with everyone from Aretha Franklin and Willie Nelson to Bob Dylan and Cat Stevens in neighboring Muscle Shoals, a recording hub most active in the ’60s and ’70s. In other music news, Reid managed to get his old pal Kacey Musgraves to perform an intimate set at Shoals Theatre, where the country-pop chanteuse, in full rhinestone regalia, chirped her progressive-twang hit “Follow Your Arrow” (“Kiss lots of boys, kiss lots of girls, if that’s what you’re into”)—a natural fit with Reid’s own heart-and-soul messaging.
5 September 2018
Billy Reid has shiny new management and, with it, a polished new look. The scruff-chinned, Southern-drawling charmer, who’ll surely never move his home base out of Florence, Alabama, nonetheless swung through his second home of New York (where he has two stand-alone stores, among several more nationwide) to showcase his rustic yet refined vision of menswear and, increasingly, womenswear.Reid said that this season he took his style cues from two sources. The first was the lakeside cabin he’s renovating, bringing together an eclectic mix of modern materials set against the lush forest and calm water of the natural surroundings. The second source was the setting of his last Shindig festival—an annual celebration of folk music, Southern cuisine, and other local fare. That setting was the Rosenbaum House in Florence, the only Frank Lloyd Wright–designed home in Alabama. It informed a fuzzy angora sweater that had the look and feel of a tapestry Reid discovered in the house, as well as an illustrated tiger motif that found its way onto several knits and blankets casually tossed over the shoulder.Reid also conveyed an advanced texture story, experimenting with softened suedes, quilted nylons, mohair knits, nubby boiled wools, and cotton coatings. In all, this was a relaxed melange of high and low, deftly balanced in a gently off-kilter palette of tobacco, maple, emerald, and cayenne. Two excellent split-wool plaid topcoats, for him and for her, drove home Reid’s new message of country luxury.
10 February 2018
Billy Reid has shiny new management and, with it, a polished new look. The scruff-chinned, Southern-drawling charmer, who’ll surely never move his home base out of Florence, Alabama, nonetheless swung through his second home of New York (where he has two stand-alone stores, among several more nationwide) to showcase his rustic yet refined vision of menswear and, increasingly, womenswear.Reid said that this season he took his style cues from two sources. The first was the lakeside cabin he’s renovating, bringing together an eclectic mix of modern materials set against the lush forest and calm water of the natural surroundings. The second source was the setting of his last Shindig festival—an annual celebration of folk music, Southern cuisine, and other local fare. That setting was the Rosenbaum House in Florence, the only Frank Lloyd Wright–designed home in Alabama. It informed a fuzzy angora sweater that had the look and feel of a tapestry Reid discovered in the house, as well as an illustrated tiger motif that found its way onto several knits and blankets casually tossed over the shoulder.Reid also conveyed an advanced texture story, experimenting with softened suedes, quilted nylons, mohair knits, nubby boiled wools, and cotton coatings. In all, this was a relaxed melange of high and low, deftly balanced in a gently off-kilter palette of tobacco, maple, emerald, and cayenne. Two excellent split-wool plaid topcoats, for him and for her, drove home Reid’s new message of country luxury.
10 February 2018
His own unique brand of Southern gentleman, Billy Reid is something of a paradox: at once rustic and polished, understated and bold, drawly and erudite. He’s as likely to be contemplating a folk jam or a dip in the lake as he is the high-minded conceits of, say, mid-century architecture. Which brings us to his men’s and women’s Spring collection, or the setting thereof—the Rosenbaum House in Florence, Alabama. Thought to be the only Frank Lloyd Wright–designed home in the South, it’s a stone’s skip from Reid’s headquarters, making it the ideal hub for his annual Shindig festival, a celebration of music, food, and fashion.Among the minimal, warm-toned rooms typical of any Wright structure, Reid placed mannequins cobbled out of archival trims and hardware, from copper buttons and brass rivets to scrap leather and his signature heirloom ribbon. If the eccentric Rosenbaums (Mildred Rosenbaum, a model in her younger years, once graced the pages ofVogue) were still with us and hosting a cocktail party in their home—now preserved as a museum—this might have been what it would have looked like. The mannequins had on a selection of relaxed Reid signatures like washed linen jackets, jacquard sweaters, distressed denim shirts, raglan sleeves, knit pants, pleated shorts, as well as Reid’s debut eyewear line, and leather lace-up sneakers with K-Swiss, some with an antiquated cracked effect. Not many would risk garment-washing a leather skirt and jacket to give them a highly mottled, rumpled appearance, but for Reid, a high degree of texture was the goal.The compact line-up reflected a new ethos for Reid, an emphasis on quality over quantity—“less is better,” as he put it. He stressed a lived-in feel and broken-in luxury as an expression of the designer’s hand. He’ll still seek to razzle and dazzle, but without foregoing a certain mindfulness. It’s just who he is. Although he has 13 stores nationwide and a new showroom in New York City, where he’s undeniably drawn, he’s a Southern boy through and through.
12 September 2017
A scrappy newcomer no more, Billy Reid delivered his most polished and heartfelt collection to date, finding new clarity after sitting out a season. His show’s intimate setting—akin to a modern-day speakeasy deep in the new Beekman Hotel, where guests huddled around small tables and swilled a sweet whiskey concoction—served as the CFDA-sanctioned kickoff to the Fall men’s collections. And it could hardly have been a better fit.But first, backstory. Every year Billy Reid, embodying every bit of his well-groomed Southern hospitality, hosts his Shindig festival of music, food, and fashion down in Florence, Alabama. He dutifully ensures that his most loyal customers, the key staff of his 13 stores and counting, and his ever-widening tribe of pals—famous and not—are there in the flesh and having a bang-up time. This journo, having gone to Shindig last year, fondly remembers the folk concerts, lake parties, endless cookouts, and all-around good vibes.That’s the spirit of down-home bonhomie with which Reid staged his mostly men’s runway show, set to a live acoustic arrangement. As models (all friends of his) strode out, a handful of performers did their thing: Blues musician and cool cat Cedric Burnside opened the show with a mellow hi-hat solo; model and singer-songwriter Karen Elson strummed a ditty from her new album; and Tony Award–winning actor Alex Sharp burst into spoken word halfway through, delivering lines of poetry by Frank O’Hara. The late poet is loosely associated with the Beat Generation, which Reid has found deeply inspirational since seeing a Centre Pompidou exhibition about the uniquely American movement last year. He was particularly moved by “the sense of community exhibited by those poets and artists, each bringing a unique talent to the table.” He paused to contemplate. “They were basically city boys who explored the country.”While “country” still factors into Reid’s clothes, with their relaxed charm and rolled-up elegance, he’s been streamlining and distilling the aesthetic recently, in the reductive style of those Beat poets. “Everything is lighter now, lighter in weight and lighter in style,” he said, “almost to the point of a sack suit.” Meaning frivolous embellishments have been stripped away in what appears to be a total stylistic revamp. He’s ditched all remaining fuss and kitsch that may otherwise distract from the crisp glamour of a laser-cut leather duster on her or a shearling peacoat on him.
Or how about a tobacco-hued cotton trench, tucked-in silk jacquard sweaters, and camel cashmere pants? Reid also introduced his first optical foray, a collaboration with eyewear startup Eponym. The Beats were nothing without their shades.
31 January 2017
“Ease, simplicity, comfort,” saidBilly Reidin his warm, languorous Louisiana drawl about his new Fall collection. When cajoled, he went into polite detail, but really, those three words summed it up nicely.Essentially, Reid has been carving out a stylistic niche all his own, a unique hybrid of Southern nonchalance and a more sophisticated international style. What was new this season was the degree to which he pursued that ease, simplicity, and comfort. He spoke of a purity of line that he hasn’t expressed before, achieved through pleats and drape rather than hardware or other unnecessary adornment. Pants were so baggy, deliberately, that the hems pooled around the models’ feet, while Huck Finn hats were so floppy that the models had to lift their heads to peer out from under them.The company is still based in Alabama, and that shows no signs of changing, but Reid travels all over the world—France, Italy, Japan—in search of just the right fabrics to convey his particular brand of country grunge, if you will. That is, when he’s not developing his own fabrics from scratch, which is what he spends the bulk of his time and creative energy doing. He goes for fabrics with a high degree of texture, like soft tweed, distressed velvet, double-faced corduroy, and cashmere, mostly in subtle variations of beige, cream, and gray. He then finesses them into the natural shapes he’s after.Also new for Reid: further expansion into womenswear. “Women’s used to account for 12 percent of our sales,” he said, slipping into business-speak. “Now it’s 30 percent.” This was reflected on the runway, with women’s taking up a sizable amount of real estate. But for now, Reid is content to put financials aside and bask in the glow of another well-received show up north.
4 February 2016
Billy Reid is something of an anomaly, a happy outlier on the New York men's scene. Sure, he's got two bustling stores in Manhattan and another on the way in Chicago (which he says has taken an agonizing six years to make happen). But for the most part, Reid revels in his differentness.That meant a particularly "soft, less fussy" direction for Spring, set to a lone acoustic guitar. As evidence, before the show Reid scrunched the lapel of a model's jacket tightly with his hand before releasing it to its original mien. "That's some butter-soft suede," he said. The twangy Alabamian has also been experimenting with "easy tweeds," as well as cotton-silk blends, knotted terry, and jacquard knits. Those busy jacquards were a highlight of the collection. They depicted abstracted mosaic scenes of nature: leaves, everglades, fossil shells, and what the designer called a "sea garden." Each of them was worked, reworked, and reworked some more before being sent off for sampling in Italy.Reid mostly kept to his signature cream, earth, and oatmeal color palette. "Never be afraid of neutrals," he intoned. There was, however, some broadening in terms of cuts. They were looser, generous, almost baggy. It would seem Reid is incorporating a whole new archetype into his down-home aesthetic: sports. Several knee-length shorts, which he indeed described as baller shorts, were especially wide. Meaning a basketball player could conceivably wear them on the court, though their sea garden pattern might be slightly out of place. Visors, too, resembled baseball caps, and on many looks, sneakers (K-Swiss) replaced loafers or lace-ups.
15 July 2015
While Billy Reid shrewdly mines his own down-home, folksy image for a sort of Southern luxury vibe (Reid hails from Alabama), he's also plugged into a streamlined international style. As it turns out, loose-fitted jackets and blazers made from wool hand-sheared by a "lady in Oregon" look great with street-influenced nylon parkas and snug beanies. For Fall, Billy Reid presented a grounded men's collection that mostly fits with what's happening in menswear at large.Reid said the collection was all about texture, and that was plain to see. Or rather, not plain at all. In the Bowery Hotel (across the street from one of Reid's two Manhattan stores), knit after knobby knit appeared in a mostly flaxen palette, to the strums of the soulful mother-son guitar duo Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear. More experimentally, several hooded capes with armholes suggested the good ol' boy knows a lot more about highfalutindesignthan his Southern drawl lets on. (Reid said the capes started out as sweaters but morphed into their current state by accident, a common story not commonly acknowledged.) While some of the textures seemed a little out of step with what New Yorkers are looking for, like wide-leg thick corduroy pants, in all this was a solid outing that will draw clients old and new.
14 February 2015
Live music and Bloody Marys kicked off Billy Reid's brunch-time Spring show, which found the quintessential Southern American menswear designer experimenting more with proportion and fabrics than he ever has before."It comes from our customers," Reid said backstage before the show of drapey, skirt-like layers. "We work on the men's and women's together, both on design and textile development, then ultimately it sits in our stores together. And those customers shop together. And they cross-shop. We have guys buying our women's pieces; we have girls buying the men's. And they're wearing them like this. There's something about it that looks super interesting."The theme here was relaxed. Especially the tailoring, which was done with softened shoulders; boxier, straighter silhouettes; loosened trousers; and flowing, elongated mid layers. These were looks that any guy would appreciate on a 90 degree, humid day in New York. Silk and linen tweed fabrics were wonderfully textured but still appeared light and comfortable; cotton jacquard and embroidered Japanese textiles flowed with baggy shorts. Even heavier fabrics like an industrial weight No.10 duck cloth were washed and distressed to appear summery in shades of tan and blue.Billy Reid didn't forgo tradition entirely for this collection, but he did firmly establish that he's more versatile and forward-thinking than you might have thought.
6 September 2014
Billy Reid's Fall '14 collection began when he was making a range of blankets for his store. "That process led to all these different textures," said Reid. "So we really let the process drive it, and those blanket textiles became coats and tailored clothing."Reid's most striking throw-turned-topper came in the form of a full-length brushed plaid coat. In a blend of gray, taupe, and rust, it seemed the picture of luxury as it swayed down the catwalk over gray tweed trousers and a handsome herringbone jacquard sweater in the same hues. This ensemble epitomized the rugged elegance that ran throughout the collection. As is often the case, Reid's Fall man likes to look smart, but isn't afraid to get his hands dirty (with the exception of the guy donning cream moleskin jeans and a sharp camel coat—whoever wears that will want to avoid the grit).Pleat-front trousers, tactile knits, cashmere suits, and casual jackets and pants in sumptuous camel hair all stood out as fresh iterations of good old-fashioned classics. A few looks had a Nashville rocker vibe. For instance, one model with shoulder-length hair wore a pair of cherry velvet pants and a chestnut haircalf peacoat. Separately, each of these pieces had its merits, but together they felt a touch contrived. On the other hand, a navy leather bomber and aubergine plaid pants hit all the right notes.This was a strong showing for Reid, though it did have some flaws. The cargo pants—tapered with elasticized ankles—came off a bit juvenile alongside his sophisticated wares. Ditto some mini-fox-print button-downs and polos. And while rabbit fur contributed a welcome flair to the lapels or linings of coats and cardigans, a model wearing a full fur vest atop a nubby gray hoodie looked out of place and downright uncomfortable—like a child stuffed into a snowsuit. All in all, though, the collection adhered to the rustic dandyism that Reid has so clearly perfected. And whether they're city dwellers or country gents, his clients will find lots of lasting staples in this Fall lineup.
10 February 2014
Alabama-based designer Billy Reid claims he has never sent a camo-print garment down the catwalk. Too obvious a Southern reference, he explained backstage before his menswear show. This season, however, that changed, perhaps because he infused his signature down-South style with a dose of California cool. "I thought about when I moved to Southern California in 1987, and how I started to add surfwear to the closet that I had brought from Louisiana," said Reid. "I wanted to mix the two worlds together."The designer's Spring man was every kind of Cali boy—from the carefree stoner in a pair of selvedge tweed shorts and a bucket hat to the West Hollywood partygoer in a light, textured jacquard suit. Reid put his own spin on the laid-back West Coast look, pairing long, tunic-style tops, or drawstring linen lounge pants, with tailored dinner jackets or distressed bombers. But the collection wasn't without its Alabama moments. The robust palette, which included wines, deep blues, and neutrals, had a woodsy feel (the peachy tones were all SoCal, though), and then there was the live music. Reid enlisted Jon Batiste—who grew up only an hour away from the designer—and his band to play the show.On the technical side, Reid stressed that fabric and print development was key—evident in his nubby linens, abundance of stripes and broken plaids, and featherweight cotton silk. Oh, and about that camouflage. It was actually an abstracted floral print rendered in yellows and olives. "I'm glad we did it. It became almost like a neutral for us," the designer said. The motif turned up on a pair of shorts as well as an oversized, hooded poncho, which—full disclosure—looked totally ridiculous while hanging limp on its hanger before the show. When it walked the runway, though, it came alive and felt playful, even fresh. That being said, you might need a dash of California swagger to pull it off.
5 September 2013
"Behind every great man is a woman," goes the old adage. Such was the case in Billy Reid's Fall '13 collection. In seasons past, Reid has put his menswear first. "It just needs to be ready earlier for the market," explained the Alabama-based designer backstage before his show. This season, however, Reid made a concerted effort to design for both sexes simultaneously. And the result, he admitted, was that his womenswear ended up having a firm influence on his Fall man's aesthetic. "It made him relax a little bit," said Reid, noting that his goal was to strike a cool, contemporary balance between elegance and rusticity. For the boys, he achieved just that, with an offering inspired by rich variations of wood. (In case one didn't get that from the palette of warm browns, forest greens, aubergines, and deep wines, the point was reinforced with his set, a giant wall of grainy wooden planks.) The collection included smart tweed and plaid trousers; chunky, broken-chevron-print cable knits; and dapper wool overcoats. The dress shirt was eliminated altogether. Instead, dinner jackets—one of which was shown in a woven cashmere—and velvet suits were paired with mock turtlenecks, plaid sports shirts, or striped cashmere cotton tees (their lines were taken from the rings on tree stumps). A bomber made from fermented leather was just the right amount of rugged. Overall, the line presented a breed of polished-casual clothes that, as Reid put it, were "realistic" and even effortless.However, while Reid's womenswear-inspired menswear was successful, the actual womenswear was less so. In his largest women's offering to date (18 looks, to be exact), Reid turned out three-quarter-length skirts and dresses that—while sometimes nipped with thick leather belts—lacked shape. A Cherokee rose-print shirt-gown, as well as a gown shown in gray plaid, had a seventies feel, and a red crepe wool blazer and skirt combo bordered on marmish. That being said, his black A-line leather skirt will be an urban staple and the bonded cashmere neoprene coats for both him and her boasted a cool, sculpted sophistication that hit the mark.
7 February 2013
"Behind every great man is a woman," goes the old adage. Such was the case in Billy Reid's Fall '13 collection. In seasons past, Reid has put his menswear first. "It just needs to be ready earlier for the market," explained the Alabama-based designer backstage before his show. This season, however, Reid made a concerted effort to design for both sexes simultaneously. And the result, he admitted, was that his womenswear ended up having a firm influence on his Fall man's aesthetic. "It made him relax a little bit," said Reid, noting that his goal was to strike a cool, contemporary balance between elegance and rusticity. For the boys, he achieved just that, with an offering inspired by rich variations of wood. (In case one didn't get that from the palette of warm browns, forest greens, aubergines, and deep wines, the point was reinforced with his set, a giant wall of grainy wooden planks.) The collection included smart tweed and plaid trousers; chunky, broken-chevron-print cable knits; and dapper wool overcoats. The dress shirt was eliminated altogether. Instead, dinner jackets—one of which was shown in a woven cashmere—and velvet suits were paired with mock turtlenecks, plaid sports shirts, or striped cashmere cotton tees (their lines were taken from the rings on tree stumps). A bomber made from fermented leather was just the right amount of rugged. Overall, the line presented a breed of polished-casual clothes that, as Reid put it, were "realistic" and even effortless.However, while Reid's womenswear-inspired menswear was successful, the actual womenswear was less so. In his largest women's offering to date (18 looks, to be exact), Reid turned out three-quarter-length skirts and dresses that—while sometimes nipped with thick leather belts—lacked shape. A Cherokee rose-print shirt-gown, as well as a gown shown in gray plaid, had a seventies feel, and a red crepe wool blazer and skirt combo bordered on marmish. That being said, his black A-line leather skirt will be an urban staple and the bonded cashmere neoprene coats for both him and her boasted a cool, sculpted sophistication that hit the mark.
7 February 2013
The Southern gent lives in history as the sharpest-dressed man of all. Billy Reid acquired his appreciation for this dapper archetype during his time spent servicing the elderly made-to-measure clients at Saks Fifth Avenue in Dallas, and he continues to elevate the tradition in his own collections. This season, he eased up on the silhouette but held tight to construction with classic details like the full canvas lining, hand-set sleeves, rope shoulder, double pleats…and he sure loves a double-breasted jacket.It was an interesting exercise when applied to Reid's fabrics, all so lightweight that even the skins could be sewn on the same machines as the silk and linen. Some of his generously cut pants were positively sheer. But maybe it was the gentlemanliness (he called the stripe in a linen blazer a "parlor stripe") that dogged Reid's clothes with a weird old-fashioned quality. And that's "old-fashioned" as in 1980s, an era when the likes of Jhane Barnes and Byblos were designing complex, richly textured but overly contrived clothes for men. Here, there was even a linen-silk dinner jacket in a particular shade of bitter chocolate that harked back to those times.Anyway, there are other reasons to appreciate what Reid does. It's all in the family history. His granddaddy never wore anything but jumpsuits, except he'd change for church. It's charming to think of a baby Billy rebelling against such casualness. Autobio detail number two: The pelican, the state bird of Louisiana, where Reid was born, haunted this collection in the form of a jacquard lining, an embroidery on a pair of shorts, the motif on a hand-knit sweater, and a batiklike print. There was something so compulsive about this idea that Reid had us at…er…pelican.
7 September 2012
The ten women's looks that Billy Reid showed to accompany his men's collection tonight were an artful extension of his ethos. He is, after all, the man whom Style.com's social coverage has sealed in delicious aspic as a party host extraordinaire. And his womenswear embodied the idea of hospitality. As in, it was not hard to imagine the women who wore these clothes welcoming guests to a shindig they'd never forget. Elements of the men's collection translated with surprising efficacy to the women's—the batiklike pelican print reemerged on a silken kimono with matching hostess pants. The same print was used in a navy wrap dress. And Reid cut his featherlight leathers into pants with the same traditional construction as his men's trousers.It was Reid's Southern heritage that yielded the true coup de grâce for his women's range, in the form of bags and shoes cut from alligator that had been stripped of its native color. What is left is called "crust" and it will, with time and an overlay of natural oils, acquire a unique patina. That notion has sufficient allure to keep 'em coming back.
6 September 2012
For Fall, Billy Reid made the leap to the catwalk after five seasons of presentations. Stylish and idiosyncratic they may have been, but Reid had come round to thinking that the way he'd been showing had given his designs a slightly misleading down-home, bourbon-and-barbecue flavor. There was actually a lot of hand-tailored finery getting lost in the mix. Reid decided that runway was the remedy. "I wanted the focus this season to be squarely on the clothes," he said. "It's all about luxe. No denim, no chinos." And when the Deep Southdidput in an appearance, it was in the exalted form of dress shoes handmade from Louisiana alligator.Reid's appreciation of the finer things in life was sharpened by a recent trip with his wife to Paris and London, an archetypal Old World experience that took on all the romantic trappings of a second honeymoon. So there was a lot of love in his new collection, as well as some ingenious souvenirs like the jacket lining that mimicked the crumbling wallpaper in the church of Saint-Eustache in Paris (that's one way to turn a trip into a tax write-off). The womenswear played out like the fantasy of an innocent American abroad: lean, long, pencil-skirted, wide-brim-hatted, sophisticated sorts with whom a young man might have an adventure. The luxe was utterly straightforward in a floor-length suede outfit, the model sporting a mysteriously enormous saddle bag.The menswear, on the other hand, had a kind of college boy formality—if Reid's women were greyhounds, his men were pups. A gray flannel suit was accompanied by a washed leather backpack. An immaculately realized shawl-collared tux in wool faille was worn with a washed oxford button-down and kilties. Reid artfully layered tailored twill over leather jackets. So the formality was actually depth-charged. But the luxury lingered in the plush fabrics or the shaved nutria collar on a tweed coat, which felt like mink. The dinner jacket in a natural cashmere hopsack that closed the show could be one of the season's most elegantly modern evening options.
9 February 2012
For Fall, Billy Reid made the leap to the catwalk after five seasons of presentations. Stylish and idiosyncratic they may have been, but Reid had come round to thinking that the way he'd been showing had given his designs a slightly misleading down-home, bourbon-and-barbecue flavor. There was actually a lot of hand-tailored finery getting lost in the mix. Reid decided that runway was the remedy. "I wanted the focus this season to be squarely on the clothes," he said. "It's all about luxe. No denim, no chinos." And when the Deep Southdidput in an appearance, it was in the exalted form of dress shoes handmade from Louisiana alligator.Reid's appreciation of the finer things in life was sharpened by a recent trip with his wife to Paris and London, an archetypal Old World experience that took on all the romantic trappings of a second honeymoon. So there was a lot of love in his new collection, as well as some ingenious souvenirs like the jacket lining that mimicked the crumbling wallpaper in the church of Saint-Eustache in Paris (that's one way to turn a trip into a tax write-off). The womenswear played out like the fantasy of an innocent American abroad: lean, long, pencil-skirted, wide-brim-hatted, sophisticated sorts with whom a young man might have an adventure. The luxe was utterly straightforward in a floor-length suede outfit, the model sporting a mysteriously enormous saddle bag.The menswear, on the other hand, had a kind of college boy formality—if Reid's women were greyhounds, his men were pups. A gray flannel suit was accompanied by a washed leather backpack. An immaculately realized shawl-collared tux in wool faille was worn with a washed oxford button-down and kilties. Reid artfully layered tailored twill over leather jackets. So the formality was actually depth-charged. But the luxury lingered in the plush fabrics or the shaved nutria collar on a tweed coat, which felt like mink. The dinner jacket in a natural cashmere hopsack that closed the show could be one of the season's most elegantly modern evening options.
9 February 2012
Not terribly long ago, pundits were pitting Wall Street against Main Street, New York big shots versus backcountry moms and pops, in the fight for the American soul. Billy Reid's new stylist, Kathryn Neale Shaffer, had her own variation on the theme. "I want it to feel authentic on both roads," she said at Reid's presentation today, "the dirt road and Madison Avenue."In a way, she was getting at the divide that's dogged Reid since the launch of his label: the slightly rural Southern twang in which his clothes tend to speak, and the rarefied New York market in which he shows them. Tonight he bridged the gap, presenting what might be his most universal collection yet.Reid's signatures were very much intact: a whiff of the seventies in his solidly cut suits with their wide lapels; the soft, textured fabrics; and the washed-out, dusty-road color scheme. But his womenswear, of which he showed a greater range than ever before, was more feminine, more considered. There was still a hint of boyishness about several looks, like the almost boxer-style tap shorts paired with long button-downs and snug little blazers—though there were frilly halter dresses and a Reid take on a palazzo pant, too. A few quilted pieces patchworked from vintage fabrics were among the collection's finest. Old meets new, city meets country, Main Street meets Madison: The guy's getting very good at smoothing down the divide. Forget fashion—he oughta be in politics.
8 September 2011
Not terribly long ago, pundits were pitting Wall Street against Main Street, New York big shots versus backcountry moms and pops, in the fight for the American soul. Billy Reid's new stylist, Kathryn Neale Shaffer, had her own variation on the theme. "I want it to feel authentic on both roads," she said at Reid's presentation today, "the dirt road and Madison Avenue."In a way, she was getting at the divide that's dogged Reid since the launch of his label: the slightly rural Southern twang in which his clothes tend to speak, and the rarefied New York market in which he shows them. Tonight he bridged the gap, presenting what might be his most universal collection yet.Reid's signatures were very much intact: a whiff of the seventies in his solidly cut suits with their wide lapels; the soft, textured fabrics; and the washed-out, dusty-road color scheme. But his womenswear, of which he showed a greater range than ever before, was more feminine, more considered. There was still a hint of boyishness about several looks, like the almost boxer-style tap shorts paired with long button-downs and snug little blazers—though there were frilly halter dresses and a Reid take on a palazzo pant, too. A few quilted pieces patchworked from vintage fabrics were among the collection's finest. Old meets new, city meets country, Main Street meets Madison: The guy's getting very good at smoothing down the divide. Forget fashion—he oughta be in politics.
8 September 2011
When we last left Billy Reid a season ago, the Florence, Alabama-based designer had scooped up theGQ/CFDA Best New Menswear Designer in America award and was short-listed for the CFDA/VogueFashion Fund prize. Now he's taken that one, too (and in a competitive field, which included Prabal Gurung, Altuzarra, and other big names). Last season, Reid showed in a bustling room on the eighth floor of Milk Studios. This time it was the penthouse. Hard not to read a little something into that.The man's star is on the rise, and he knows he's got more eyes on him than ever before. Make no mistake: He didn't disappoint. The menswear on show was classic Reid: masculine suiting mixed with more workmanly pieces, cut on the slightly looser side—a little rope in the shoulder and a slight boot-cut to the pants. Reid's fabrics are those of traditional menswear: wool and tweed, camel hair and moleskin, cotton and cord. He's not above a luscious (if subtle) flourish, like a formal dinner jacket in un-dyed velvet, but his aesthetic is masculine and untrendy. Like the designer himself, it's tried-and-true.Reid did himself a service by refining the Southern twang of his show, which always resided as much in the spirit and the staging of his work as in the clothes themselves. That even extended to the set, pared down this season from the mud-and-all Alabama haul-in antique doors and weathered floorboards he used to use. Here, the sparer environment refocused attention on the clothes (including, for the first time in a Reid presentation, a few women's looks, which had a slinky appeal of their own).The one potential quibble is that the offering might have been a bittootried-and-true; this wasn't a season marked by change. But perhaps that's just how Reid needs it to be right now, given that plenty of the visitors dropping in are playing catch-up to his work. (The South, where he has several stores, has been on the bandwagon for years.) Reid showed the best of what he does tonight. But here's the tricky thing about the spotlight: Next season, people will be clamoring to see the next twist in the tale.
11 February 2011
The building's ZIP code was—as far as we're aware—10011, but a step into the Billy Reid presentation at Milk Studios was a step over the Mason-Dixon Line. Before 20-odd weather-warped doors (sourced from Southern Accents Architectural Antiques in Cullman, Alabama) stood 20 strapping gents in sack suits and braces, field pants and "marsh jackets." According to the show notes, we were making the acquaintance of Bitt Hammonds ("always sockless, never Scotch-less") and Sunny Beatty ("squirrel-eating black sheep"). In other words, the Louisiana-born Reid channeled his home state for his new Spring collection—specifically, a dusty, twenties-era New Orleans.If that sounds like a lot of lead-up before getting to the clothes, it was. Reid's insistent scene-setting can sometimes get in the way—you half expected a streetcar named Desire to pull 'round the bend—and there was a costume element to some of the looks shown here that could stand to be toned down. But no amount of set dressing can detract from the strength of the designer's individual pieces, especially, this time around, the outerwear. A coated cotton officer's coat (here a "marigny coat") was softer than its military inspiration would suggest, but no less structured. Likewise a washed leather lineman's jacket in a buttery tone of caramel. Smartly designed, smartly made: That's the sort of combo that'll get a fella noticed. No wonder Reid was namedGQ's Best New Menswear Designer of the Year this year, and a finalist for the CFDA/VogueFashion Fund, too.
8 September 2010
Style.com did not review the Fall 2010 menswear collections. Please enjoy the photos, and stay tuned for our complete coverage of the Spring 2011 collections, including reviews of each show by Tim Blanks.
13 February 2010