Lela Rose (Q5007)
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
Lela Rose is a fashion house from FMD.
| Language | Label | Description | Also known as |
|---|---|---|---|
| English | Lela Rose |
Lela Rose is a fashion house from FMD. |
Statements
Lela Rose splits her time between New York City and Wyoming and for pre-fall, the two couldn’t-be-more-different locations were her starting points. Beloved by Uptown girls, her signature cocktail dresses come accessorized with Western-inspired belts this season; some of which Rose sourced from vintage fairs. Though Rose loves the thrill of the find—and a part of her would love to keep her scores—she will also be selling them in stores.While Rose is known for her party attire, she’s also trying to focus on more versatile everyday essentials. A midi-length skirt that dominated the lineup could be daytime-appropriate, but switch the top with something dressier and it can certainly take you late into the night.
20 December 2024
Lela Rose has the following goal in life: “To give people clothing that they can see wearing in a lot of different ways—but they're fully dressed,” she said. “I’m dedicated to always being dressed no matter where you are, no matter what you're doing.”This season, she was dressing people for a hypothetical outdoor dinner party. Rose loves to entertain al fresco (so much so that she has a Rizzoli book, Fresh Air Affairs) and wanted to make elegant outfits to do it in: A red gingham knit dress mimicked the pattern of a picnic, and a top had bold stripes akin to the rows of a freshly mowed lawn. Americana colors were mixed in with earthy hues—a palette Rose, who lives in Jackson Hole, believes mimics a Wyoming summer: “It's the colors of living in the West,” she said.Another motif for this collection was the tulip. Inspired by the floral still lifes of Dutch artist Leendert Blok, the tulip was a bold silhouette on a colorblocked dress and a subtle embroidery on a lace gown. A scarlet top, meanwhile, evoked the shape of petals.Yet it’s not just the flowers seen in Dutch art that she was taken with. It was the whole ambience: “I love how in old Dutch paintings, ladies were dressed to the nines,” she said. And with this new collection of mostly formal looks, perhaps for Rose’s customers life will begin to imitate art.
13 September 2024
Western clothing is currently trending, but for Lela Rose, it’s a perennial style: “I grew up in Texas, went to school in Colorado, and now spend a lot of time out in Wyoming. The west has always influenced me,” she says. On her phone are thousands of photos of ranch cowgirls from the 1940s and 1950s that she first started saving in 2012. (“That’s as far back as my phone goes,” Rose said, laughing.) And a year after opening the Lela Rose Ranch in Jackson, where the designer owns a home, she decided it was finally time to do a western-ish collection of her own.There’s split skirts with concho details and buckskin fringes. Dresses come in paisley bandana prints. Shirts have intricate lace yokes. Several shirts come in floral prints that feel less like garden blooms and more like wildflowers. Rose ensures these don’t veer into cosplay territory by sticking with a muted palette: Most clothes are white or black, while a select few have accents of moody blues and reds. “It’s very sophisticated,” she said.This is important. Rose’s brand (and its price point) attract what she describes as a “guest of” clientele—customers who are buying for special occasions. Her take on Westernwear, therefore, can’t solely be for laid-back home life on the range. Plus, there’s the geography to consider: Her brand is Manhattan-based. “They’re very refined. They’re things that can work in city settings but really have a kind of western feel to them in a cultured way,” Rose said of the collection. “It’s very much for that woman who does live a ‘guest of’ life—but she might be a guest of something in New York City, or she might be going out to a wedding in the west.” (This is more probable than one might think: Like Westernwear, country weddings areseeing a surge in popularity.)Some items feel like they were meant for urban living more than others, like gowns with full skirts, for example, or sequined knits. Rose has embraced knits the last few seasons. “Our customer absolutelylovesthe knits. I think the reason is that they’re so comfortable, and we do them in a way that they’re so flattering,” she said. Will Lela Rose become a brand that’s just as rooted in Park Avenue as it is in Park City? As Rose lives more of her life in a Mountain time zone, it seems the aesthetic influence might be a permanent one.
15 July 2024
“We dress a very social lady—we’ve got a swan!” Lela Rose said, laughing, in her midtown showroom. It was a gray and gritty February day outside, but in there was an explosion of rich, opulent colors: citrine, magenta, bronze. There were ball gowns woven with shimmering sunflower motifs, sparkly knits, and metallic-fringed tunics. A bolero came in black tinsel. All of it was dream fashion fodder for those who regularly attend charity galas at the Pierre and weddings at the Plaza…then gossip about them at Sant Ambroeus on Madison Avenue afterward. (Fittingly, nearly every outfit here would also have passed the strict dress code at La Côte Basque, the famed restaurant frequented by Babe Paley, Lee Radziwill, and C.Z. Guest.)That’s not to say Rose’s work reads as outdated. There were A-line skirts, sure, but also an off-the shoulder waffle-knit dress that she envisions pairing with a big turquoise belt. Rose’s client “loves color and she wants to be comfortable,” said the designer. “I think she’s very similar to me—I want to be in something special, but I don’t want to have to think about it all the time.” Sets showed a flattering sliver of midriff when styled a certain way, whereas a minidress with a bubble skirt had a sky-high hemline. (Rose, by the way, revolts against knee-length: “You either go long or you go short—I don’t find there’s much in between.”)The designer was influenced this season by Italian artist Laura de Santillana, known for her contemporary interpretation of centuries-old Murano glass. (Santillana, who died in 2019, was famous for her “standing glass” series of colorful, minimalist geometric sculptures.) “She made these different kinds of glass colored lenses—I think that they’re just so beautiful. They’re like prisms of light,” Rose said.The overall ethos of her line aims to be one of elevated yet enthusiastic energy. It’s not a concept that feels necessarily novel, but it does feel, well, a little different in the age where The Row’s stealth-wealth wallflowers dot the Upper East Side. Lela Rose is certainly its own brighter bloom.
9 February 2024
The world can be a harsh, scary place. Lela Rose felt this recently while reading the Walter Isaacson biography of Elon Musk, which made her reflect on the way society “is moving at warp speed to things that are incomprehensible.” Her pre-fall collection is a salve to those feelings; it was inspired by someone who was neither harsh nor scary in the slightest: her grandmother, known as Grand-Sue.A former Neiman Marcus model, Grand-Sue had a knack for finding four-leaf clovers and would write Rose notes like “follow your heart, and creativity, and something will inspire you.” Rose kept these letters, recently rediscovered them in a box, and used them and Grand-Sue’s penchant for pressed flowers as the basis for pre-fall.Poplin dresses and shirts are punctuated with lace, while linen columns and jacquard knit dresses resemble botanical rubbings. The nipped waists, off-the-shoulder necklines, seamed midi dresses with high necklines, and full skirts recall the era in which Grand-Sue worked as a model. “She would always be dressed,” Rose said. “She was never overly formal, but she was classic and elegant and she had this otherworldly quality about her.”Rose’s medium is formalwear, and the showstopper of the collection is a bubblegum pink column with large, flat (you could say pressed) appliqué flowers. It feels more modern than the rest of the offering, and can be paired with a bolero with floor-length cape-sleeves. The effect of the whole season, though, is nostalgic—whether or not you know the backstory.
5 December 2023
Lela Rose knows that being inspired by florals for a spring collection is a little expected “I know—groundbreaking!” she said with a laugh, referencing the classicDevil Wears Pradadig. Since Rose is almost always looking to flowers for inspiration, she gets a pass. Last spring, she staged a fruit-filled runway show complete with banana phones and strawberry embroidery. This spring, she was craving simpler silhouettes. If spring 2023 was a celebration of just how kitschy Lela Rose could go, this season showcased the most pared back vision of the brand.When Rose was in Japan a few years ago, she visited the studio of the botanical artist Azuma Makoto. She had seen his work used in Dries Van Noten’s spring 2015 runway show and found it to be hauntingly beautiful. “What he does is groundbreaking florals; he does these gorgeous sculptures, then freezes them, and sends them up in the atmosphere,” Rose explained. When translating that into her own, peppy collection—which was decidedly optimistic and not haunted—Rose created abstract floral prints and petal-life ruffles: blooms slightly obscured.Like many designers this season, Rose was feeling formal matching sets with pants and ball skirts. But the dresses were strongest: a light-as-air lavender style with a watercolor-like pattern at the bottom; a midi covered in a vivid yellow and orange floral print on a blue backdrop, accentuated with a lace trim on the sleeves; even a utilitarian brown sleeveless Claire McCardell–ish one with contrasting jewel buttons in purple, yellow, and blue. All undeniably wearable, with a detail or two that made them special.
15 September 2023
One thing about Lela Rose, she loves a theme. In the past she’s mined fruit stands,The Nutcracker, and the Queen of Hearts for her chipper, motif-heavy collections. This season is no exception. Rose was inspired by C.S. Lewis’sThe Chronicles of Narnia(she’s clearly not alone; Greta Gerwig has been tapped to direct movies based on the series). The novel—with its White Witch and heroic lion Aslan—certainly provides enough richly textured inspiration. You can see it in the gold Rose uses as embroidery, tassel fringe, and velvet dresses and suiting, and the delicate, ethereal evening wear. This is very much a collection that speaks to holiday party goers more than beachside vacationers.A complex mirrored pattern that features a sun, lion, butterfly, and snake lends an ornate drama to the fuss-free silhouettes. In fact, most of the actual clothes are fairly simple: relaxed pantsuits, fit-and-flare dresses, A-line gowns. They’re dramatized by the textiles and embellishments. Luxe? Yes. Safe? That too.
14 July 2023
Lela Rose’s fall 2023 collection is resplendent with hearts: heart cutouts on ankle-length trousers; a knit sweater featuring a heart with a sword through it; sweetheart necklines and heart pockets; there was heart lace, heart embroideries, and heart jacquards. But love wasn’t really on Rose’s mind this season. “I’m honestly not a fan of Valentine’s Day, it’s so kitschy and cheesy,” Rose said. “That was never really the inspiration. It was really about a deck of cards, and this regal fantasy in a way.”Fall 2023 is Rose’s trip through the looking glass to see—you guessed it—the Queen of Hearts. And while Rose is known for her relentlessly optimistic designs (see the fruit-themed spring 2023 collection), she went a bit edgier and darker to bring the rich, royal influences to the fore. How does she balance such a cutesy shape with making clothes for adult women? “It’s the way that you use it, and don’t overuse it,” she said, pointing to a black velvet dress with a heart-shaped bodice and pockets as an example. Evening wear achieves this best. The goldenrod and salmon dresses made of lace with hearts (and other abstract shapes) are more subtle iterations of the theme. A white column gown with rich red and blue floral sequin embroidery is a regal standout—despite depicting the lowly three of diamonds.
21 February 2023
Lela Rose loves a theme. Last season, the designer staged a street-fair fashion show complete with fruit stands and banana phone knits. For pre-fall, Rose found inspiration under the sea. The danger of choosing a concept as literal and broad as food or fish is that the clothes can verge into silly territory pretty quickly. Thanks to a mostly muted color palette, the garments this season never feel too over-the-top.I was quite charmed by the open-weave knit golden sweater adorned with little fish ornaments with flexible spines (a play on fishermen’s nets), and by the delicate organza dresses illustrated with abstract blue waves and orange and pink botanicals and, again, fish. But not every reference was so direct. A crushed blue plissé dress was inspired by moving water, and trousers embellished with a geometric sequin pattern are what Rose describes as her “buried treasure pants.” Like most of Rose’s collections, it’s pretty and wearable, with a touch of quirk.
30 November 2022
It’s been two years and 364 days since Lela Rose has staged a runway show. And that’s a shame—the designer loves to show outdoors in semi-public areas where passersby can get a glimpse of the action as well. This time, she showed in a public area at Hudson Yards. Guests were greeted by a series of stands with goodies like cantaloupe juice, coconut water (served in a Lela Rose-branded shell), and fresh fruit up for grabs. That open, friendly approach is reflected in Rose’s clothing. The guiding influence of her collection this season is not hidden under layers of obscure references or in between the stanzas of poems. It’s food.“How do you match your drink to your dress and your dress to the table?” Rose says. “It’s how my brain works.” The fruit theme is strong throughout the collection: there’s a banana phone knit sweater with matching high-waisted undergarments, and cut-out apples and bananas at the bust of a dress Rose jokingly calls “fruitatas.” “I love kooky, fun pieces,” she adds.The more abstract options are more elevated. Consider the full-length sheaths in rainbow brite colors with 3D embroidery of a tulip running up the entire length of the dress (flowers are an integral part of any dinner party!) The most interesting pieces are the ones that, from afar, leave you guessing: a lace pattern flecked with lemon wedges, and a gingham dress that features the silhouette of a tablescape in the skirt for an abstract effect. These have a little more depth than the jejune fruit salad offerings. That said, sometimes you want a strawberry rhubarb tart and sometimes you want one of the strawberry gummy candies laid out on each seat at the show.
10 September 2022
Resort is a peculiar season because some designers lean into seasonally appropriate winter wares, while others take the name literally and offer suitably breezy clothes. It can be hard in the heat of summer to transport yourself into a cozy, curl-up-by-the-fire-with-a-glass-of-cocoa mindset that some resort collections conjure. But Lela Rose is going to try to get you there. Her latest collection is all tinsel and tulle (in spirit if not in fabrication).The Lela Rose holiday party last year involved a trip to seeThe Nutcrackerwhich inadvertently became the jumping off point for resort. “We were sitting there looking at the costumes. Not necessarily the shapes, but the layering of the tulles,” Rose says, emphasizing that the collection is only “very loosely” based on the actual ballet. It’s true, you won’t find any tutus here. But you will see plenty of outfits suitable for sitting in the audience at the ballet. The most cinematic is a houndstooth skirt and shirt set adorned with large black pom poms and a fuzzy collar; the most appealing is a beige tulle dress with a high-neck, more subtle polka dots, and a slightly dropped waist. It’s a little ’80s, a little Degas.Known for feminine dresses that appeal to grown women, Rose generally avoids gimmicks, and instead relies on the colorful and the conservative. Standard fare are the pastel pink and purple dresses with scalloped cutouts; turtleneck dresses in black, white, and red; and a strapless chartreuse tea-length dress. But Rose designs party clothes for resort, and naturally, it’s the more adventurous outfits that stand out. One of Rose’s favorites (and mine) is a black matelasse ball skirt with a scallop-trimmed waist, paired with a tulle bra top. Proof that there’s nothing hotter in fashion right now than an exposed midriff.
9 June 2022
With all its dainty florals, cowgirl accouterments, and feminine silhouettes, Lela Rose’s fall 2022 offering seems like a straightforward dive into Western-influenced glamour. The designer, who currently splits her time between New York and Wyoming, may be intrigued by the differences between East Coast and Mountain West style. However, her take goes beyond the usual city vs. country interpretation of the concept. This season Rose wanted to address her client’s busy social calendar while giving her wardrobe a bit of grit. Her woman still has plenty of cocktails and nights out on her schedule, but standard-issue party frocks have lost their appeal. As such, Rose sought to spice things up, taking elements her collections are known for—bold color, sumptuous fabrics—and approaching them with renewed vigor.Images shot on the terrace of Rose’s studio illustrated the concept. Models decked out in bolo ties, wide-brim hats, and vintage Navajo Concha belts posed amidst the sprawl of the Manhattan skyline. Though she used vintage Westernwear for the accessories, Rose’s dresses were fit for city slickers ready to kick up their heels—or boots. All the pleated skirts with a hint of Lurex shine, fitted bolero jackets flecked with petals, and golden brocades felt festive, so did the column dresses adorned with reflective black tassels that sparkled like tinsel.Subtler pieces like a long-sleeved jacquard check dress with a kerchief neckline were given a boost thanks to details like strategically placed fringe. Even the knits received a remix. “I have been collecting Western tapestries for years, and I like bringing those patterns into these knit sets that we have been doing,” said Rose. “We take that and then add on these simple beaded details that go down the sleeves and continue throughout the body.”Such thoughtfully considered details were the collection’s greatest strength, even when they required a history lesson. West wasn’t the only direction Rose headed this season. The collection’s prim prettiness owed much to Victorian fashion’s embroidery obsession and draping techniques, the latter of which was used to great effect on printed crepe dresses. The period’s crypto communication system, Floriography, informed the pattern selection. A covert means of expressing attraction, intimacy, or even upset with a floral arrangement was an essential part of etiquette in the 1800s.
Intrigued by the complexity of the multiple meanings attached to blooms, Rose embellished her pieces with those rich in symbolism. “A sunflower could mean fake riches, but now it takes on a completely different and more optimistic connotation,” she said. “They go through the entire collection, whether the sunflowers are printed on cottons or done in these Tencel pleated tulles that are fabulous. I loved the idea of using this secret language of flowers where so much can be said without a word.”
12 February 2022
Lela Rose has always been a colorful designer, but shoppers weren’t always on the same page. Pre-pandemic, a common refrain among New York designers was that stores typically chose safe neutrals over risky vibrant hues. Now, of course, we’re hearing the opposite: Bright, bold colors and prints are flying off the shelves. No one wants to re-emerge in shades of gray. In her gorgeous Garment District showroom, Rose was pleased to report that her cherry and orchid-striped separates (inspired by Dutch tulips and artists like Vermeer and Hieronymous Bosch) are already a huge hit, while similar styles in black and cream are getting less attention. Similarly, she reported that buyers who typically stick to dresses and gowns are newly interested in her more playful, casual top-and-skirt sets.\All of that said, those looks were still firmly in Lela Rose’s wheelhouse: full skirts, juicy colors, painterly florals. The real surprise came near the end: a trio of color-blocked dresses in shocking neons. It’s possible Rose has never used colors quite this fluorescent. A bustier dress in chartreuse, highlighter pink, and black was equal parts polished and audacious, and will likely attract a new, younger customer looking to make a major statement at next year’s weddings.
22 November 2021
Lela Rose was set to host one of New York Fashion Week’s first shows after 18 months of Zooms, and it would have been a fitting welcome back. Her shows have never been your standard up-and-back runways; they usually feel more like garden parties, with snacks, cocktails, gorgeous flowers, and live music. We’ve always counted on Rose to bring a bit of joy and lightness to the stressful week, so it was disappointing to hear that her show was canceled in the weeks before Labor Day, mainly due to COVID uncertainties. She hosted appointments in her showroom instead, with views of the Empire State Building just beyond the terrace. Even a press preview is cause for celebration in Rose’s world, though; she has a floral-wallpapered bar tucked into the corner.Her spring 2022 collection would have looked radiant in the outdoor party she’d been planning, but the real takeaway is how her customers will celebrate—in big and small ways—when this collection hits stores. If Catherine de Medici’s chateau, Marie Antoinette’s gardens, and Catherine the Great sound like over-the-top starting points, the clothes were a happy mix of opulence and comfort. A medallion print inspired by ornate Renaissance ceilings had a hand-drawn finish and appeared on a loose, ankle-length column; micro-pleated midi dresses were cut in crispy cotton, not silk; and tiered gowns had crushed-looking taffeta sleeves that would only get better as the night wore on.Color was another big takeaway for Rose: She’s never been a black dress designer, but she reported her customer is craving bold, unapologetic hues for re-emergence. A limoncello coat printed with acid-y greens and blues was a particular surprise, while a blush gown with enormous 3-D flower petals is apparently already a top seller with retailers.
20 September 2021
You could call Lela Rose a “dress designer,” but that description tends to feel prim and stuffy, and Rose is neither. This is a designer who bikes 30 blocks to her office every day, even in the rain, and yes, often in a dress. Lately she’s been relying on her cache of hardworking, lightly stretchy knit dresses; at her garment district showroom, she was modeling a color-blocked pointelle number that just launched for pre-fall.She wore it with bejeweled flats that day, but has almost certainly styled it with Birkenstocks and party heels too. There was a similar spirit of ease and versatility in her resort 2022 lineup, from new knit dresses—here in a thicker ribbed wool—to patchwork floral columns cut like T-shirts. The collection had a touch of Western flair courtesy of Rose’s time in Jackson Hole this winter: The opening wool dress came with a built-in fringed shawl—something of an elevated take on a blanket coat or poncho—and several looks were cinched with vintage turquoise belts, from oversized cardigans to a luxe tunic and trouser set in saffron velvet.Any of those looks could make low-key party options or dressed-up daywear, but it was refreshing to see some true eveningwear too. Rose was never swayed by the headlines declaring leggings would take over our closets; she knew women would be eager to dress up by lockdown’s end. Those looking for a new LBD might go for the fringed midi with needlepoint-inspired fil coupé or the seamed jacquard number inset with climbing vines, but it was the rack full of voluminous, drop-waist pouf skirts and sheer crop tops—all mix-and-matchable—that looked like a real joy to wear.
8 June 2021
“Everything’s coming up roses!” Lela Rose declared over Zoom, brandishing a tulle skirt embroidered with crimson petals and a flowing dress in a reversible rose print. Beyond the flower’s obvious associations with her name, the designer felt it was symbolic of our year of growth, describing a rose’s journey and the patience required to “nourish tender buds into rich blossoms.” It’s taken us longer to blossom than we thought—when this collection ships, we’ll be 18 months into the pandemic—but it will be worth the last stretch of waiting. Vaccines will be administered, some regulations will be lifted, and we may just feel relaxed for the first time in over a year.Rose isn’t betting on black-tie weddings and galas resuming anytime soon. But she’s definitely looking forward to outdoor garden parties, late-summer barbecues with friends, and reasons to dress joyfully again. For any of those events, her lean, long-sleeved reversible dresses looked appealingly elegant yet low-key, with the cheeky bonus of being two dresses in one. They’re the kind you could wear with Birkenstocks—Rose’s go-to sandal—or ballet flats, not stilettos. The designer likes the mix of a wrap skirt in the same reversible print with a chunky turtleneck and leather boots for when the weather cools.Other looks nodded to the rose in subtler ways, like a black column topped with an ivory capelet resembling two petals. The detail reappeared on a cerulean dress with plum roses and a capelet in the same shade; the palette was surprisingly bold for Rose, but a happy surprise. Those of us preparing to go back to the office might gravitate toward the “suit” version: an eggplant capelet tunic with matching cropped trousers. It’s a softer, easier alternative to a strict pantsuit, ideal for easing back into your “normal” 9-to-5 (and out of your leggings).
5 February 2021
A collection appointment on Zoom feels particularly unnatural for Lela Rose. Pre-pandemic, the designer rarely missed an opportunity to throw a party, whether it was during Fashion Week or a more low-key season, like pre-fall. There were always canapés, cocktails, and gorgeous flowers, plus models who looked like they were actually having fun. It was nice to see the clothes as they’d actually be worn IRL, surrounded by friends and fun—not on a distant runway.Rose is itching to throw another party again when it’s safe—possibly next summer, when this collection will be arriving in stores and many of us will be vaccinated. With outdoor get-togethers and intimate at-home soirees in mind, she narrowed her focus to dresses, tailoring, and even jeans—a first for this designer—that you could just as easily wear with Birkenstocks as with a teeny-tiny heel, as seen in the look book. The silhouettes were easy and unrestrictive: Midi-dresses came with “sunburst ruching” at the side for a touch of shape, while vibrant floral gowns were cut in sheer cotton voile, not silk. Rose even described one of her fancier items, a straight saffron column with lace appliqués, as having the fit of a towel you’ve just wrapped around your body.There was never going to be a sweatshirt or legging here. Rose’s sense is that women will be excited to ditch their pajamas and get dressed up again—just not in a way that looks out of touch. A group of fine-gauge knit dresses with subtle rickrack details might have nailed the ideal balance of expressive yet easy. In shades of orchid and color-blocked ivory and blue, they’re the kind of dresses you’d wear constantly: barefoot on the couch, or with strappy sandals for a small wedding. Women will be searching for those hardworking pieces in 2021, particularly those who are becoming more mindful of their consumption and vowing to get more use out of their clothes.
16 December 2020
When much of your business is wedding dresses and occasion wear, you tend to think about moments, not “wardrobing” or wearability. You design for the first kiss, the surprise party, the photos, the memories, etc. In times like these, not only are those memorable events not happening, but we’ve lost any ability to plan ahead for them. Most of us have no weddings to look forward to, no trips to fantasize about, and few excuses to dress up. So Lela Rose is shifting her mindset to “finding the beauty of every day” instead: the sunrise, the sunset, and the quieter moments in between. Her spring 2021 collection has a new casualness in that spirit, with cotton poplin in place of taffeta or silk and a greater emphasis on separates. She hopes her customers catch the meaning in the full skirt exploding with butterflies: the ultimate sign of change and new beginnings.Even in those laid-back pieces, Rose’s exuberance wasn’t dulled. Her simple cotton shirtdresses were trimmed with blown-up eyelet frills, not your run-of-the-mill broderie anglaise. For brides planning civil ceremonies or backyard weddings, Rose cut a sweeping skirt in the same white eyelet with a matching crop top. Other women might wear the top with jeans, and it was easy to see Rose wearing the skirt with a bright button-down or cardigan. “I love to be dressed and feel better when I am, with a casual and comfortable bent now,” she says. Her customers likely feel the same way; they aren’t the type to lounge around in a tracksuit. Their idea of “casual” might more closely resemble Rose’s vivid red and saffron day-to-night dresses, trimmed with guipure lace and styled with foam Birkenstocks.
21 September 2020
Lela Rose knows how to brighten even the gloomiest, grayest afternoon of New York Fashion Week. Instead of staging a by-the-book presentation in an empty gallery space, she invited editors and buyers into a tiny, flower-filled shop in the West Village, which is functioning as a Lela Rose pop-up throughout the week. In addition to selling pieces from her new spring collection, she’ll host cocktail classes, community events, and sell actual bouquets of roses and peonies and tulips. Florals are a beloved motif for Rose; she even baked shortbread cookies pressed with pansies and daffodils to match her fall 2020 collection. In most cases, her new florals felt looser and a bit more spontaneous than in the past, particularly a black long-sleeve gown with gentle padding at the shoulders and painterly ferns and leaves scattered throughout. A button-front dress with bluebells and poppies was even styled a bit more freely with wide-leg trousers; similarly, a more geometric daisy jacquard cocktail dress was grounded by a black turtleneck and chunky boots.Rose will always have a market for her pretty, flowery dresses, so the easier silhouettes and modern styling tweaks were what felt new here. A single-sleeve powder blue midi looked cool with flat black boots, and she even cut a great black suit you could dress up or down: The long belted blazer had a subtle double-layer effect through the body and hit just past the hips; the model wore it with matching narrow trousers and white boots. Suits have been everywhere this week, and while this one had the requisite clean lines, it didn’t look trendy or masculine. The same woman who loves Rose’s florals and brights would likely be just as into the feminine shape and tiny rows of crystals above each pocket; those touches of flair will stand out from the severe, oversized options elsewhere come September.
12 February 2020
Lela Rose is a proud Texan, but prefall marks the first collection where she really mined her Lone Star roots. Her key reference was her father’s ranch, Rey Rosa, which she visits frequently with her family; they were at the ranch for Thanksgiving, and in May, Rose and her husband threw a party for their 20th wedding anniversary there. Experiencing Texas in the spring brought back fond childhood memories for Rose, as well as memories of her father, who passed away a few years ago. All together, the timing felt right to channel the place into her work.The dominant motif was an evergreen toile de jouy. At first glance, Rose’s customer likely won’t register its deeper meaning, but each element is dear to the designer: Wild Texas bluebonnets mingle with owls (her father was an avid birdwatcher), stalks of wheat, wooden fences, and Phoebe, her father’s first dog. There’s a little girl on horseback who some might interpret as a young Rose; others will simply be reminded of their own free-wheeling childhoods. Elsewhere, a full denim circle skirt was hand-embroidered with all of those characters, then quilted over again; it was more casual and rugged than Rose’s typically polished fare, ditto the boyish yoke-detailed button-downs. They didn’t look out of place, though, and instead channeled Rose’s more playful, unfussy side. She’s a woman who rides a bike to work and throws a great party; down on the ranch, she’s likely wearing a men’s shirt and jeans, not a tea dress and heels.On that note, the painterly wildflower prints felt more typically “Lela,” but appeared on looser, more comfortable shapes. A long-sleeved saffron gown stood out, and several dresses were cinched with self-tie sashes instead of strict seams and boning. The silk-fringe “bandanas” were a clever touch; a few were knotted like sarongs around evening gowns and skirts, lending a bit of softness to the waist after years of narrow, nipped-in silhouettes.
3 December 2019
After a solid month of shows, presentations, and appointments for Spring 2020, you’d be hard-pressed to get an editor to attend another one anytime soon. Luckily for those of us covering bridal, Lela Rose’s events are a pleasure to attend—they’re laid-back, high-spirited, and actuallyfun. You couldn’t really call her event a “real” show, anyway: there were no seat assignments, no security guards, no riser of aggressive photographers. It was more of a “guerrilla show” or flash mob, complete with unsuspecting bystanders walking their dogs or chatting on park benches. As in-the-know editors and guests waited for things to start, an old-fashioned trolley pulled onto Horatio Street and models in white dresses stepped out and walked leisurely through the gates.Each one took a loop around the fountain, just inches from where editors stood. It offered an up-close look at the detail in the clothes, particularly Rose’s signature pearl embroideries, and the subtle tweaks in fit and proportion. A model breezed by in the sleekest of ivory slips, turning to reveal a low back and a row of covered buttons; it wouldn’t be a Lela dress without a bit of that Old World refinement. A floaty Swiss dot minidress with a giant rosette was almost identical to a frock we saw in Rose’s ready-to-wear show in September, which nods to this collection’s bigger message: an embrace of individual, wear-as-you-like separates, designed more like a “fashion” collection than a bridal one.Rose wants to dress her bride in a gown for her ceremony, but she also wants to provide the low-key pieces she might need for her many surrounding events: the engagement party, the rehearsal dinner, the reception, and maybe even the after-after-party (see the feathered miniskirt and silk cami). She’s preparing to open her first-ever bridal boutique in Dallas, where the full range of options will be available in one place. She’s calling it “ready-to-wed,” and it’s precisely how the rest of the bridal industry needs to shift in the next decade.
7 October 2019
One of the big, agenda-setting themes of New York Fashion Week has been the evolution of the runway show as experience. A few designers have set the bar extremely high, like Ralph Lauren, who invited guests to a black-tie dinner complete with a performance by Janelle Monáe. Smaller designers are getting in on it too, like Collina Strada’s Hillary Taymour, who brought a farmers market to Gramercy Park, and Susan Alexandra, who invited friends and iconic drag stars to a “bat mitzvah” party. This is hardly news to Lela Rose, of course. She’s hosted garden parties in the West Village, taken over a Grand Banks boat for happy hour, and even staged a “dog show” for Fall 2019, with models accompanied by Insta-famous pups. It all stems from Rose’s own genuine love of entertaining: She understood the uplifting power of a gorgeous atmosphere, a live band, and a delicious snack before most of her peers.Impressively, Rose has almost never repeated a venue. For Spring 2020, she set up café tables along a row of benches in Hudson River Park, scattering yellow rose petals in lieu of a runway. Models glided past (slowly and smiling!) in whisper-sheer tulle gowns, open-back shirtdresses with New York–skyline prints, and fine-knit columns, with a live soundtrack by a trio of musicians. Rose wanted it to feel akin to sitting at a sidewalk café and watching stylish women go by (in New York, for the record—not Paris). The gently cinched midi-dresses—one in sheer, rose-printed cotton and puffed sleeves, another with knife pleats and a floral-printed lace—are the kind that would make you stop and ask a girl where she got it. But the looks that will shock Rose’s customers most were the ones with flashes of midriff: A blush poplin midiskirt was styled with a matching jacket and bralette, and another look combined a white ruffly mini with a crisp button-down unbuttoned over a bra. They might feel risky to buyers who are more accustomed to Rose’s tea dresses and gowns, but this is a trend we’ve been seeing a lot this week—and it might just inspire a new wave of young women to shop with Rose for the first time.
10 September 2019
Lela Rose name-checked Slim Aarons as a loose reference for Resort 2020, but it mostly came down to the way she staged the lookbook: with models lounging around an elegant American home or lined up on its grand, curving staircase. They weren’t dressed in the resortwear and big sunglasses you often see in Aarons’s photographs, though; Rose’s interpretation of his ’60s heyday was more about a return to certain silhouettes—like drop-waisted dresses and voluminous capes—and casual-chic daywear, seen in monochromatic crepe separates with charming rickrack trims. The rich, saturated palette felt Aarons-esque: cherry red, hibiscus, tangerine, periwinkle, and stark black and white. Rose mixed and color-blocked those shades in ways that felt new, particularly when it came to her fanciest evening pieces, like a raw-edged satin dress in Valentine’s Day colors. A simpler strapless column had overlapping bits of pink and red guipure lace, a detail this reviewer remembers fromRose’s Fall 2019 Bridal collection(where it came in a subtle mix of ivory and cream).There’s been more and more crossover between Rose’s ready-to-wear and bridal offerings of late. The girls who loved her ivory minidress covered in heirloom brooches from Spring 2020 Bridal but aren’t planning on getting married anytime soon will be happy to pick up the lustrous pink version here. On the other hand, brides-to-be who aren’t interested in wearing ivory should bookmark Resort’s blush satin gown with velvet bow straps and a deep flounce at the hem. Who needs virginal white when you can wear a rich, mood-lifting color like that?
30 May 2019
For the fashion-conscious bride,traditionalcan be something of a dirty word, conjuring stuffy taffeta gowns or, worse, closed-minded attitudes. Getting married in 2020 will come down to making your own rules and largely ignoring many of the traditions that have defined our culture for decades. As such, brides (and grooms) are beginning to dress more freely for their ceremonies and surrounding events.Not all traditions are bad, of course. Some are worth holding on to. For Spring 2020, Lela Rose was thinking about a bride’s “something borrowed” good luck charm, and how wearing an heirloom to your wedding can honor and connect you to the women who came before. “Whenever people ask who I’m inspired by, I always talk about my mother and my grandmother,” she said, pointing out a draped-back gown with two vintage-inspired brooches securing the straps. She’s hoping that many brides will swap them out for their own antique pins, but you could also wear the gown as-is and save the brooches to pass down as “something old” to a daughter, niece, or friend.A balloon-sleeved minidress covered in those brooches took the idea into happily OTT territory. For a designer who typically works in clean, sculptural silhouettes with more low-key flourishes, like covered buttons or a collapsed bow, they were a surprising departure. The brooches also appeared on Rose’s least-conventional look: a sleeveless belted blazer with slim trousers. The lucky model who wore it at the presentation—staged at Hudson River Park’s new carousel—looked pretty comfortable perched on a unicorn. Most brides will pick it up for their rehearsal dinner or engagement party. To this New Yorker, it had “City Hall wedding” written all over it.
12 April 2019
Lela Rose’s fashion week presentations (and Resort presentations, and bridal presentations) can make your day. It doesn’t matter how stressed out or sleep-deprived you are; you can always expect to feel fairly revived by the good vibes, great music, delicious treats, and even better cocktails at her shows. The waiters at today’s unveiling were passing out greyhounds—i.e., grapefruit and vodka over ice—and it was the first of many puns related to the main event.The runway was covered in artificial turf, with a low picket fence around the perimeter and a series of pedestals. It was also the first time this reviewer has ever been asked if I was “okay with dogs” before going backstage. We all had an inkling there’d be something particularly cute about this show, of course: The invitation was a blue first-place ribbon with “Roseminster Dog Show” printed in gold. The official Westminster Dog Show happened in New York tonight, as luck would have it, and as a lifelong dog lover, Rose decided to host her own version. Along with a dozen models, she cast a variety of pups—some show dogs and some who are famous, like Riley Bean, an orange Brittany with 33,000 Instagram followers.If you’ve frequented Rose’s shows, it wasn’t a huge surprise to see beagles mingling with Dalmatian minis backstage. She’s done garden parties, boat parties, and even a “Tribeca takeover” back in June, which was essentially a parade on the streets of downtown New York. If today’s campy setup distracted from the clothes at times—a few pups were too excited to sit still, and Jenna Bush Hager and Robert Verdi were on hand to deliver witty commentary—a closer look revealed some charming touches. Rose’s fellow dog lovers won’t be able to resist the navy dress with canine cameos for buttons, and there was a black-and-ivory “man’s best friend” print illustrated with bulldogs, Yorkshire terriers, and dachshunds. On a long-sleeve silk dress with pearl smocking along the bust, it looked surprisingly elegant, sort of like toile.Subtler nods were the coats and box-pleated dresses in multicolored “King Charles” plaids. Silhouette-wise, Rose is feeling for higher necklines, longer sleeves, and leaner, more body-conscious silhouettes, like a slim camel wool dress and a cherry-red pouf-sleeve blouse with matching high-rise trousers.
That look was part of the “Non-Working Group,” announced by a model holding a giant placard (a funny riff on the categories in a dog show: working, toy, hound, non-sporting, et al). Earlier in the show, there was a “Ladies Who Lunch” group, and the finale looks were “Cocktail Companions.” Told you it was campy! Rose’s customer will shop from all of those groups, but the best-in-show award goes to the knife-pleated midi dresses and column gowns with peaked pearl edges; they were at once vintage and modern.
11 February 2019
A cloud of baby’s breath hung from the ceiling in Lela Rose’s studio last night. She said she was going to move the arrangement to the center of the room and keep it there for a while. The designer had just finished shooting her Pre-Fall collection, and the space was slowly transforming back to business as usual. Rose is famous for her cocktail party presentations, but even when she’s up to something more low-key, she knows how to create an inviting atmosphere. She makes clothes for women who like to do the same: work hard, throw playful soirees, and look playfully buttoned-up while doing so.This season, Rose upped the ante on her recognizable sensibility, adding color-blocking and grosgrain ribbon detailing to sweet dress and skirt silhouettes. She also incorporated a new floral scarf print on a pretty pair of trousers and a matching blouse. While the checked short-sleeved suiting and trench dress didn’t quite speak the same language as the rest, they were nice daytime additions to the collection as a whole. It was a tightly edited lineup but one that certainly had a look to fit any occasion, whether her customer is in a busy studio or at a fabulous party.
4 December 2018
We’ve lost count of how many labels have traded sterile, white-walled runway shows for more atmospheric parties, lunches, and cocktail events this week. (Gabriela Hearst, Mansur Gavriel, Brock Collection, and Jonathan Cohen are just a few.) For Lela Rose, this is far from a novel concept. Nearly every season—and that includes Resort, Pre-Fall, and bridal—she hosts garden parties or brunches in lieu of stuffy presentations. In Rose’s world, fashion, friends, food, and fun—her “four Fs”—aren’t mutually exclusive. Champagne and canapés are nonnegotiable, and there’s usually a flower stand, illustrator, and live music in the mix, too.This afternoon, she brought everyone to Grand Banks, the docked boat bar in Tribeca, for a seaworthy Spring 2019 party, complete with lobster rolls, oysters, and Aperol Spritzes. Despite the gray weather, the boat was packed—insiders know Rose’s parties aren’t to be missed—and it was flat-out fun. It isn’t often that you look around a fashion event and see a smile on everyone’s face, but Rose tends to have that effect. She’s a born entertainer with an infectious energy, and her clothes have an immediate, mood-lifting charm, too. Her collection looked almost uncannily at home on the Grand Banks sailboat: The yellow awnings almost matched Rose’s punchy, citrus-hued dresses trimmed with lace flowers, and there was a slight nautical feeling in the wide-striped dresses, checked suiting, and khaki trenches piped with gingham.Compared to the cocktail dresses and occasion-wear we tend to associate with Rose, these were happily casual, low-key pieces. A khaki “trench dress” with a trompe l’oeil–wrapped bodice was particularly chic, as was a nipped-waist, pleated cotton gown spliced with blue and brown gingham through the skirt. It had a square neckline—a small tweak that made a big difference—and the model wore a gingham head scarf, which gave the look a Grace Kelly air. The takeaway? We can always rely on Rose to remind us that elegant doesn’t have to mean fussy—and in a moment of crowded, bad-taste fashion and wild trends, her timeless, graceful garments might just hold more appeal than ever.
12 September 2018
For the most part, Tribeca is a fairly quiet neighborhood. It’s filled with fashion industry types, art collectors, celebrities, and fit, fancy moms. There are a couple of hotels and a handful of restaurants, but typically one needs to venture up to Soho or over to Chinatown for the loud noise and brazen chaos this city is famous for. This week, Tribeca got a jolt. In celebration of her Resort 2019 collection, designer Lela Rose led a full-on marching band and parade of editors, buyers, and friends from Duane Park (about 10 minutes northeast) to the front door of the fabulous loft apartment where she entertains weekly. The band played songs by Bruno Mars and Beyoncé while baton twirlers skipped across Hudson Street and PR personnel handed out balloons and small bunches of pastel roses. There were models, too, blissfully dance-walking their way to the designer’s home dressed in bright pieces from a diverse collection that included a green long-sleeved frock with a flattering square neckline, a purple drop-waist minidress over fuchsia trousers, and a navy flower-print pajama set.Rose’s presentations are always spectacles in one way or the other. If they aren’t being held in a park with gourmet hot dogs, they’re executed as beautiful lunches or dinners inside new and trendy restaurants. Her second passion, after designing, is entertaining people. This was certainly one of her more over-the-top to-dos, which is perhaps slightly surprising for a preseason affair. But it all made sense when you stopped marching along with the show and really thought about it: Her pieces are made for women like her who love to throw a dinner party, and at the same time for those who attend events and want to turn heads when they walk in. Rose has long pleased her clientele with pretty, uncomplicated garments that are beautifully constructed. Her fans will no doubt be happy with the offering this season. If they can have a little fun and dance through their own quiet neighborhoods in the clothes, too, even better.
6 June 2018
The Lela Rose bride is the woman with a huge smile on her face, dancing to big-band music and charming everyone in her radius—all while looking unfailingly elegant. She’s refined but relaxed. She may have planned her wedding to a T, and there might be 200 people there, but she didn’t let herself get too stressed about it. What’s the point? Her hair is likely styled in loose waves or a chignon tied with a ribbon—something that will only look better after a few hours on the dance floor—and she’s wearing a simple, pretty gown, nothing stuffy or overworked. And certainly not a “naked dress.”Rose calls the look “a relaxed formality.” In a preview, she arranged a handful of gowns (and one bustier-and-pants look) on a rail—all in traditional shades of white—and pointed out the less-traditional details: the matelassé texture of the two-piece set, the matte silk wool on a strapless number (more modern than shiny satin), the subtle blouson of a T-shirt dress. “Our brides are cool and independent,” she said. “They definitely want a gown, but they don’t want to feel like the gown is wearing them. So it never feels too traditional.” That means Rose usually works in two camps: classic gowns with sculptural flourishes—like her favorite, a strapless number tied with an origami-like bow in the front—and softer, more feminine dresses with floral appliqués, a dash of sparkle, or an interesting neckline. “I think something we’re known for is that we don’t just offer strapless dresses,” she pointed out. “Our most popular gowns are the ones that aren’t strapless, which I really enjoy.” Most of her tank or spaghetti-strap styles come with extra interest in the back: a detachable watteau, an oversize bow, or a low, scooped-out back.As with most of her presentations—bridal, ready-to-wear, or otherwise—Rose staged this one in a special venue: Little Owl the Townhouse, where guests snacked on bite-size cakes and got an up-close view of the dresses. Rose shot the photos on the streets of the West Village too, so you can almost picture her models walking out of the frame and saying “I do” at a nearby garden or rooftop.
13 April 2018
Lela Rose took a step back from New York Fashion Week this season, but she didn’t necessarily get a break. Her studio is bustling. For starters, Rose designs not only ready-to-wear and pre-collections, but also bridal, and she added another category this week: Pearl by Lela Rose, a new little sister label of lower-priced, casual pieces in the spirit of Rose’s main line. Think poplin shirtdresses, striped knits, and printed minis. It’s a very 2018 idea with an old-school twist: Pearl will only be available via trunk shows. Rose and her team are creating complementary entertaining accessories and cocktails for each collection, too, so the experience brings Rose’s four Fs together—fashion, friends, food, and fun. It will speak to a younger group of working women who might not attend galas and fundraisers, but do invite friends over for book club and rosé.Those girls—and Rose’s longtime customers—will find plenty to love in the new main line Fall 2018 collection, too. Rose spoke about wanting to design new pieces that aren’t “casual,” per se, but have flexibility. On that front, the tailoring stood out, like a cobalt double-breasted suit with a curvy, slightly shrunken silhouette. A certain type of woman will wear it with sneakers. Rose is into the idea of matching sets as a kind of suit “alternative,” too; a blush peplum top and trousers were charming and a little sleeker than past iterations. Rose even designed a tiny removable peplum to slip over lace blouses and trousers, so you can DIY your own “suit” or jumpsuit moment.
13 February 2018
To describe Lela Rose’s clothing as “feminine” almost doesn’t cut it. Ladylike elegance is her thing, and she’s never shied away from a pearl embellishment, a shimmering lace appliqué, or a romantic floral, either. Which is why Pre-Fall fell like such a marked departure: Instead of beginning with a sweet pastel or botanical print, Rose started with a single swatch of Glen plaid wool.Menswear has never been the big story at Lela Rose, though if you flip through her recent collections, it becomes clear that she’s been leaning in this direction for a while. Cocktail separates are a growing category for her, and Rose herself said she’s more inclined to wear trousers and a “table top”—her name for a super-special evening blouse that can be admired across the dinner table—than a tea-length dress. As for that plaid, she developed a checked version in shades of lavender, green, and sky blue, and applied it to classic poplin as well as to less-expected fabrics like taffeta and chiffon. The clever twist was that “evening” fabrics were used for daytime pieces, and vice versa: A bustier gown came in a mix of cotton and chiffon checks, for instance, while a spaghetti strap day dress was whipped up in ultralight taffeta. For the dress-averse, there were a few of those unmissable “table tops,” too, including a plaid tunic worn over matching trousers and a gorgeous peplum blouse with cream-on-cream soutache embroidery.
13 December 2017
Lela Rose wrote the book on entertaining—literally. In 2015, she published a tome for Rizzoli calledPrêt-à-Party: Great Ideas for Good Times and Creative Entertaining. In the past few years, editors have witnessed her talent for elegant yet unfussy decor, food, and cocktails IRL at her ready-to-wear and bridal presentations, staged at charming venues like La Sirena and the Union Square Pavilion. Yesterday, she chose the Elizabeth Street Garden, a tiny Nolita spot that’s at risk of being turned into a housing development. The sculpture garden is beloved by locals, and since one can’t legally close the park, passersby got to wander in and catch a glimpse of the gowns.Rose filled a hollow cement block with ice and bottles of sweet tea, hired a jazz band, and had a Rose Bar where guests could arrange a bouquet to take home. The models’ simple, unequivocally pretty gowns completed the snapshot of a laid-back, classically American good time. The designer explained that she was looking at photos of her all-time favorite gowns from decades past, then considered how to rework them for 2018. For instance, the ivory jacquard used for many of the dresses had raised dots, a riff on a classic (probably too delicate) Swiss dot she loved. You have to zoom in to see it here, but the result was pearly and luminous. There were actual pearls along the edges of a long-sleeved gown, too, a signature detail she’s carried through a few collections. Rose was encouraging guests to get up close to the dresses and view them from every angle; many of them had a flattering scooped-out back or a bow-tied sash that you can’t see in these photos.
9 October 2017
Lela Rose invited everyone to a picnic in the park today. It was Washington Square and there was a gourmet hot dog stand, a cookie cart, a portrait illustrator, and a flower stand. If she were ever to open a Lela Rose theme park, today’s presentation could be the perfect starting point. It was everything this designer is about: pretty and playful. The new clothes, of course, matched these sentiments, with lovely floral-print bow tops, striped poplin dresses, and placket pants. This season was also very much about vibrant colors and somewhat surprising two-in-one looks for the more traditionally minded Rose. She injected her ladies-who-lunch dresses with neon lime green and orange, and showed a beautiful ruffle-sleeved top and pencil skirt that could be buttoned at the waist and worn as a dress.Other standout pieces included a green and white silk stripe organza dress with laced seams and a sky blue belted shirtdress worn off the shoulder with bow cuff sleeves. Rose’s Spring showing had a little more jolt and pop than the last couple of seasons, and in all it was a romantic and appropriate wardrobe for a dressy garden party in the middle of the city.
11 September 2017
Lela Rose chose the idyllic Jefferson Market Garden for her Resort presentation, and in typical Rose fashion, it was really more of a party. Models in floral-embroidered blouses—her take on “vintage tattoos”—and full-skirted dresses lounged on quilted blankets or wooden swings while guests ate gelato, made custom bouquets, or simply enjoyed the 70-degree weather. Everyone could agree: It was a nice reprieve from back-to-back showroom appointments.Parties like this are de rigueur for Rose—her ready-to-wear and bridal shows are usually staged at a restaurant with a side of canapés and Champagne—but this was the first time she tried the concept for Resort. It speaks to how important the season is for her business, and how much the Resort market is growing in general. While this collection will ship in early winter, Rose specializes in the kind of festive, ladylike party dresses women need all year round, whether their holiday plans include a tropical getaway or a New Year’s Eve soiree at home. The LBDs covered in pink or green rosebuds will be a no-brainer, and the sparkling matelassé frocks with grosgrain lace-up details stood out, too.Fans of Rose’s cocktail separates won’t be lacking for options either. There was a charming ivory off-the-shoulder top and trouser combo, which came with a pearl trim borrowed from Rose’s last bridal collection. Elsewhere, a few dresses mimicked the look of separates in one hybrid piece, like a taupe embroidered dress with an organza “T-shirt” built in underneath.
8 June 2017
Lela Rose’s bridal presentations tend to get a lot of love on Instagram. In seasons past, she has taken over The Pavilion in Union Square and Café Altro Paradiso to show her ladylike dresses with a side of cocktails and canapés. La Sirena was the destination for Spring ’18, where editors and buyers snapped endless photos of the open-air setting, bite-size snacks, and pink napkins hand-embroidered with the theme of the collection:Love is love.A fur-tufted ivory cape had the same phrase on the back, but Rose wasn’t looking to get political. For her, bridal is about designing simply pretty, sophisticated dresses that aren’t stuffy or overworked. She described her ethos as “a relaxed formality.” “Even if one of our gowns nods to tradition, there’s an ease about it. It’s part of the changing rules of bridal,” she said. “I think women want to feel like themselves, instead of wearing a dress that’s unlike anything they’ve ever worn in their regular life.”For Spring, that meant slim gowns with lots of Rose’s signature flower appliqués; a square-neck A-line dress with raw-edged silk and crystal embroidery; and a pantsuit comprised of an off-the-shoulder silk faille top with pearls stitched along the edges and matching trousers. It mirrored the new cocktail separates in Rose’s ready-to-wear collections and would make a sweet, dance floor–friendly reception look.
21 April 2017
Lela Roseis the consummate hostess. Today, she chose the intimate restaurant Loring Place as her runway of sorts, sending models out in lovely looks as her guests noshed on delightful dishes from former ABC Kitchen chef Dan Kluger. “I believe in sitting people at a table together,” the designer mentioned after the show-slash-luncheon. “You sit, you connect, you build community—that’s really what people need right now.” That and a sense of “lightness,” as she put it, which came through in every single one of her Fall ensembles. Tulips were a major theme, as were mink Peter Pan collars and frilly headbands. Her classic dresses kept much of their signature flounce with peplum and drop-waist silhouettes, while the gowns, like a citrine, tinsel embroidered chiffon number, looked red carpet–ready.There was no single reference or inspiration to the collection as a whole, but Rose kept things consistently easy and enjoyable, from the sweet ensembles down to the tulip-embroidered napkins and cookies in pink to-go containers.
13 February 2017
A common topic of conversation at Pre-Fall appointments is retail’s out-of-whack delivery schedule. Once upon a time, Pre-Fall sort of made sense for the clothes purchased in June, because women bought them months in advance and waited patiently until September to wear them. Chalk it up to the fast-fashion brands or the exorbitant prices of much designer gear, but that simply isn’t the case anymore. Many designers now consider Pre-Fall more of a “summer” collection. So what do you want to buy when the weather is finally starting to heat up and you’ve got weddings, weekend trips, and three glorious months of warmth ahead of you?Lela Rose’s formula looks something like this: white shirtdresses with flowerlike puffs of fringe; graphic lace skirts in a pretty mix of fuchsia, orchid, and hunter green; and lots of slim, stretchy knits. “We aren’t the go-to brand for true casualwear, but we have a customer who is looking for that now,” Rose explained. “She still wants something special, but needs to be able to wear it on her vacation.” A few breezy cotton voile gowns in a painterly wildflower print certainly qualified: “They have a casualness to them, but still feel dressed.”As for the fancier attire that is Rose’s specialty, she’s experimenting with new silhouettes. “We’re doing a ton of cocktail separates, which is where a lot of our business is going,” she said, pointing out a flared, lace-trimmed black tunic and skinny trousers. “I love pieces that can take you to a black-tie event but aren’t gowns.” Perhaps next season will find Rose trying her hand at a Le Smoking—we can picture it in sparkly fil coupe or with her signature 3-D appliqués.
9 December 2016
Ten years is plenty of reason to celebrate. Toasting her decade in the bridal business, this seasonLela Rosedid what she’s most known for (apart from designing sweetly ladylike wares, that is): entertaining. The designer-slash-hostess-extraordinaire assembled buyers and editors at Union Square’s Pavilion to indulge in canapés and rosé and view her latest offering.The crux of the collection was the pearl—an embellishment that’s gotten plenty of love in both Rose’s ready-to-wear and bridal offerings over the years—even echoed in the show’s place settings. But most lovely were the many ways in which she interpreted it in Fall’s dresses: as the trim on a sparely beautiful, strapless faille number; encrusting the collar of darling separates; and dappling the placement lace on a bustier bodice. The cocktail sheath, which the label has built a staunch following upon, emerged here as a fitted mermaid gown. Another Rose signature, her lustrous floral fil coupes, turned up as a sweeping gown with a removable, off-the-shoulder capelet. A lovely anniversary outing, indeed.
7 October 2016
“I’m all about fashion, food, and entertaining,” said designer Lela Rose this morning at Café Altro Paradiso in New York’s Soho, where she staged her salon-style show for Spring. “And matching your dress to your cocktail!” Actually, she didn’t say that in the restaurant, exactly—she was speaking from her makeshift backstage: a Ducati and Triumph dealership. Rose let out a laugh, appreciating the humor of her sherbet-hued frocks surrounded by European motorcycle-culture machismo.When those pieces did make their turns, they made the observer want to fast-forward through winter. Rose served rosé to accompany, say, a flapping grosgrain pencil dress with flat-ribbon shoulder straps. It was one of her stronger looks; a pitch-perfect echo of and complement to the merriment of sunny-day luncheons. Same goes for the designer’s tennis T-shirt and banded skirt combo; it was prep but also cool.Rose is not in the practice of design adventurism. She runs a solid business that sells wearable clothes. Some pieces today, like a pair of poppy-print pants, had a bit of a challenging fit (in the trousers’ case, a high waist with a straight and pajamalike leg). Rose’s lean and sporty dresses are her true forte. As is her eye for atmosphere and little touches. That attention to detail extended to her runway sunglasses, which boasted teeny-tiny daisy embellishments.
12 September 2016
A subtle marine motif emerged fromLela Rose’s Resort collection, and in some nice ways, to boot. Take the designer’s peachy “minnow” foil crepe, which did indeed conjure up the glimmer of fish darting just beneath the water’s surface, and which she whipped into one of her signature A-line frocks. If there’s a consistency in the designer’s silhouettes, then Rose’s chief extravagances remain the fabrications she develops each season, from her beloved fils coupes to Resort’s rippling “wave” lace.The looser quality, which has characterized some of the designer’s recent fare, has also led to an uptick in a relatively humbler category: knitwear. A clingy, off-shoulder jumpsuit was chic and looked as though it would be an easy, comfortable wear for even avid hostesses like Rose herself. On the note of ease: We’d wager an enthusiastic reception from the brand’s fan base when it comes to a series of pre-styled one-piece outfits; what appeared to be a crisp cotton shirt tucked flawlessly into a pencil skirt in gleaming rose gold, was, in fact, a dress. Spake Rose of the creation: “One zip, and you’re done!”
10 June 2016
Easewas the word du jour at Lela Rose’s Spring bridal outing. There was nary a full skirt in sight, as Rose instead set her sights on the sort of shapes that would allow you to, say, slip easily in and out of a limo, hit the dance floor, and everything in between. Rose designed with a particular eye to the many varied forms the modern wedding can take; black-tie separates, which have proliferated in her brand’s ready-to-wear offerings, came to life as an organza capelet, embellished from the bustline down and teamed with a crepe column skirt, as well as in the form of a cream strapless tunic and trousers. Floral fils coupes, increasingly a signature element of the designer’s aesthetic, were well represented, seen here shot through with sparkling, metallic threads, and underscoring the offering’s feeling of both lightness and breezy luxury.
15 April 2016
There was a sweep of change atLela Rose’s Fall collection this afternoon, in every sense of the word. Firstly, she’s joined the ranks of designers offering ready-to-purchase options from the runway—three of the looks she showed today can be bought now, directly from her website. In that, Rose disclosed a separates-driven focus, which marks a shift, given her dressmaking rep. And, regrettably, she’s mourning the absence of her father, who sadly passed away two weeks ago. But Rose can take solace in the fact that if Dad was watching, he’d be smiling; these clothes were solid, and in line with the designer’s prim and popular appeal.Rose mentioned those “evening separates” as a “replacement of the ball gown.” One combo, a cloche-sleeve top and matching pencil skirt in moss green, was a simple execution of the idea (it’s also one of the looks available now). The best example arrived via a bonded stretch T-shirt (also in moss green—chic) over a gold tinsel skirt. It added the right amount of youthful glimmer without shedding any grown-upness.Rose also hinted at a “modern suiting” angle; that didn’t quite land, but it didn’t matter. And, it’s worth noting, there were still plenty of gowns in her roster, many of which came in sheer organza and allover embroideries of patches of quills. She’s not moving the fashion needle by any means, but Rose makes consistent, accessible, adult clothes, and that remained the case today.
15 February 2016
Is there anything like a walk down memory lane? Not long ago, Lela Rose found herself unearthing photos from a trip to Istanbul during her teenage years for her daughter; soon those images became fodder for the designer’s Pre-Fall lineup. Rose’s yen for the striking floral motifs of traditional Turkish tiles manifested itself as punched-up jacquards and graphic guipures. A rich-looking brushstroke print came in an otherworldly sea-green dubbed “Bosphorus green,” after the region’s famous strait.There’s usually a certain feminine hauteur to Rose’s clothes, from the trim yet modest sheaths to her pert A-lines, but her considered use of Eastern motifs did a lot to diffuse that in compelling ways. The tattoo-inspired lace gown she showed a year ago, for example, came to life here through the lens of Istanbul, a bolder, more folkloric floral. The wild-card touches not inspired by Rose’s trip were generally winning ones, too: A floor-skimming gown was decked out in fluffy midnight blue tinsel. Best of all was the folded detail of a romantic, full sleeve, as seen on a green cloque dress. That look was soigné, unexpected, but right in step with Rose’s ladylike vernacular—a veritable Turkish delight.
2 December 2015
If girls just want to have fun on their big day, they’ll find plenty of it inLela Rose’s kicky Fall ’16 bridal offering. Equal parts sweet and soigné, the season married sumptuous fabrications, like a metallic pansy fils coupe (it echoed a similar textile spotted in Rose’sResort collection) and pearls and petals aplenty, with some flirtier shapes. Case in point: a charming knee-length number covered with a froth of organza blooms that made you hope Rose’s customer might take a risk and forgo more traditional, floor-grazing styles.
9 October 2015
Lela Rosedid a lot of hiking this past year, and this season she wanted to bring the overgrown fields of wildflowers she stumbled upon during her rambling walks onto the runway. The challenge, then, was how to incorporate florals—a done-to-death spring motif—in a new way. Rose was more interested in the “endless variations ” present in nature than anything else, so she injected her blooms with surprising hits of metallic and neon pink and yellow for a twist on the classic pattern. She also played around with texture and embellishments. In addition to her signature fil coupe, there were metallic tweed dresses hemmed with fringe, jacquard stamped with metallic, and even a blush skirt and shell top combination that made a case for crochet after dark.Rose is perhaps best known for her feminine and romantic dresses, and while those were on full display, the designer also showed she’s willing to forgo some of the sweetness for a little freshness. A blush jumpsuit would have been saccharine with a full bow at the waist—instead, Rose left the knot slightly undone. A white shirt and short combo, which almost appeared to be made from a sporty mesh, turned out to be made from a perfectly country club–appropriate white eyelet. Her willingness to get outside of her comfort zone worked in her favor for the most part, but it also led to a few missteps. A gray knit dress felt a bit out of place, and some of the crystal embellishment verged into tween territory.But Rose’s customer is not necessarily after anything groundbreaking, and there were plenty of looks that were just plain pretty. A white organza gown embroidered with white flowers would make a stunning wedding dress, while a cotton poplin shirtdress with a wide metallic hem proved that Rose’s grown-up elegance can indeed be artfully translated for day.
14 September 2015
Lela Rose would seem to be, at her aesthetic core, a traditionalist, with an evident love of A-lines and classic eveningwear—each season she sets about translating those elements through the lens of the 21st century. For Resort the designer cast classic, luxury American sportswear as her guide, with help from muse Ali MacGraw, in all of her unfailingly smiley glory. If a MacGraw reference sets visions ofLove Storycollegiate peacoats and flares dancing through the brain, think again—the industry's current mania for all things '70s has yet to touch the Lela Rose brand. The designer did, however, introduce a nice wide-leg trouser that she whipped up in poppies, both the print and the hue. A floral motif reigned throughout the offering, from simpler fil coupe numbers on up to a gown in ditsy-patterned organza. Light as air but with an undeniable gravitas to its construction, the latter felt like a breezy, modern solution for Rose's younger, gala-hopping clientele. A glossy, watercolor-esque frock with a Watteau back would also do nicely. For daytime she proposed sweet popcorn knit jackets and blush separates bearing glossy, scalloped details. Pink, patent-trimmed pieces felt a touch young. Items more in the mold of sportswear maestro Bill Blass, like an A-line crimson shirtdress, commanding in its simplicity, rang truer to the Lela Rose aesthetic.
3 June 2015
Lela Rose dedicated her Fall outing to a beloved vacation spot: Wyoming. It was a nonliteral reference; after all, Rose's first languages are fil coupe and guipure, not Pendleton and denim. She conjured up motifs of the American West quietly through an uptown-girl lens of fringe-cut failles, feathers, and gingham, all the while sticking fast to her signature shapes and unapologetically feminine fixations. Rose would do well to diversify her silhouettes: The parade of sheaths, fit-and-flares, and crop tops with A-line skirts grew fatiguing at a certain point. She was on the right track with a longer, boxy metallic brocade button-down and a straight-leg trouser. To that point, the most commendable efforts here were the casual daytime separates (a category that's hardly synonymous with the Lela Rose name), like a black cardigan with a back fringe detail or a plain cotton voile blouse with shades of Herrera around the edges. A few more pieces like those would do a lot to diffuse all the sweetness elsewhere.
17 February 2015
Lela Rose's Manhattan home was designed around the idea of entertaining—elegantly and ambitiously (to wit, there's a glass table that descends from the ceiling to accommodate guests). And Rose's clothes are just the sort you might expect to see on some envy-inducing hostess: polished yet commanding in their sheer femininity. For Pre-Fall, the designer turned an eye to a work by artist Michael DeLucia that hangs in her living room, an enormous piece of wood. At first glance it appears to have been shredded by a human hand, but as Rose explained, it was actually done using lasers. Appropriate, considering the precision of so many of her garments, such as a tailored guipure lace frock and a shimmering fil coupe ball skirt. The eveningwear is sure to win a lot of hearts, but Rose whipped up nice daytime pieces, too, like fit-and-flare dresses in a tomato red hue borrowed from that DeLucia. Even stronger still was an exquisite blush dress with dense, pseudo-Victorian embroidery mimicking (as the seemingly un-inked designer herself told it) tattoos.
3 December 2014
Girls will be girls, but few so much as those Lela Rose envisions, with her hyper-feminine vernacular. She's fluent in flounce, A-lines, lace, and nipped waists—enough for her work to feel cloying from time to time. But Spring found Rose eyeing a happily minimalist idea: the kimono. "It's a garment that has transcended centuries," she effused backstage. Rose made it work for her in subtle ways, from metallic brushstroke prints to wrapped bodices that recalled robes (they exposed that improbable triangle of flesh at the upper abs that's been aired so often on the runways of late). But there were no sharp turns taken here, and looks leaned toward the defiantly ladylike, with plenty of fit-and-flare shapes and off-the-shoulder necklines. Things teetered on the fussy in a few places, particularly with heavy floral prints. There Rose could have used some wabi-sabi on her side. But her particular vision is consistent and has mass appeal. To wit, she's been tapped for a capsule collection for plus-size megastore Lane Bryant, which hits stores next year.
8 September 2014
"I always try to make Resort as seasonless as possible," said Lela Rose on a drizzly afternoon at her New York studio. The designer specializes in the kind of mid-weight, day-to-evening attire that easily works year-round, so her goal was not a lofty one, but it should be said that she was right on point this time. Rose is adept at using girly elements—florals, ruffles, and ribbons—in precise, graphic ways that help to cut back significantly on the saccharine. The cotton guipure on the skirt of a white cotton shirtdress was done in an unexpected geometric polka-dot pattern, and a delicately knitted black dress had a sculptural, cage-like-hem detail. Rose's floral was hand-drawn and embroidered in black on a simple V-neck dress in a chambray blue matelassé, and thick strips of grosgrain and tulle were fashioned into swingy striped tank tops and simple sheaths. While elements like black and geometrical shapes added a sharp flavor to many outfits, the designer went the opposite direction with the season's ikat print, softening up the classic pattern by making it look like it had been painted on. Each technique displayed the sense of balance an easy-to-wear garment requires.
19 June 2014
Molecular gastronomy seemed an unlikely starting point for Lela Rose's perennially pretty dresses and ladylike separates, but this season's journey began at Ferran Adrià's El Bulli—Rose visited the restaurant before it closed back in 2011. Fast-forward three years, and the designer reinterpreted Adrià's quivering spheres of who-knows-what into a beautiful, bubbly stacked-pearl trim that made skirts and peplums swing.Many of the models walked apprehensively (and one—in a glowing magenta gown with a sweetheart neckline and very full skirt—took a spill), but when Marihenny Pasible hit the runway in an ivory silk blouse with a thick lace hem and pencil skirt to match, she strode with confidence. Maybe it was the blouse's boxy cut that gave this look some swagger; Rose's dressier separates this season—many T-shirt-style silhouettes trimmed in pearls, lace, and feathers—were especially strong. An early group of navy mohair and gray wool pieces may have been a nod to the season, but they left us a little cold. It's true that the citrine grid-embroidered organza shell and matching full skirt that followed weren't exactly autumn-appropriate, but like many of the show's best pieces, they can be adapted. (Or better yet, worn where it's warm.) A black, body-skimming skirt of silvery lace will look chic with a sweater, and even the gowns this season were somewhat convertible, thanks to pieces like a cropped tulle T-shirt that can be layered on top.Backstage after the show, Rose gushed about her recent dinner party, at which Adrià was the guest of honor. "Truly my dream come true," said the designer. So what does one wear for such an affair? "I actually wore Look 24."
8 February 2014
The wrought-iron birdcages dotting the backdrop of Lela Rose's Pre-Fall lookbook weren't just decorative styling props—they were actually the starting point for her latest lineup. The designer was attracted to the cages' undulating lines and filigree forms. She channeled her inspiration into silhouettes (flattering bell-shaped and A-line skirts), fabrics (iridescent fille coupe jacquards and swirling lace), and scrolling prints. Among the highlights here were a baroque-patterned blouse and slim trousers set, as well as embroidered tulle T-shirts and Rose's signature cocktail dresses. Keeping in mind the collection's early-summer delivery time, Rose made sure to include plenty of options for warm-weather weddings. The graphic black-and-white frock with a sheer, spongy mesh hemline would be an ideal choice for celebrating a close friend's vows.
3 December 2013
Lela Rose took a trip to Copenhagen last summer and developed a style crush on Danish architect and designer Arne Jacobsen. Despite his designs being over half a century old, pieces like the iconic Egg and Swan chairs are still holding their own, and Rose was impressed by how modern and relevant they felt. Egg and Swan are all about clean, undulating curves, so Rose brought those lines to her clothes. She played with the idea of filling in the negative space they created with contrasting textures and materials, like the wood-grain lace insets on a simple white sheath that turned it into a dress with graphic oomph. The silhouette didn't strictly undulate. A silk skirt and matching top in a radiant pink floral print had plenty of volume and swing, and a pair of angular, semi-boxy crop tops looked great over slim, printed pencil skirts. The palette was a highlight: There were none of those sad, murky colors you associate with Viking country, but some great icy blues with pops of citrine, lilac, and orange. Some of these clothes will withstand the Jacobsen test better than others—the block pattern on a fil coupé dress made it look bulky, despite the nipped waist and feminine skirt—but none of them were intended to reinvent the wheel, design-wise. Wear them in the spring when the weddings start, and rest assured, despite their creation myth, you won't look anything like an egg at all.
7 September 2013
Lela Rose is thinking about buying a painting. A László Moholy-Nagy painting. So it's perhaps unsurprising that the Bauhaus artist's linear, geometric shapes permeate Rose's latest collection. "I was thinking about the geometry of stripes, circles, grids…but a blurred grid. I always like a weird edge," the designer said at her studio.The weird edges are there for Resort. A shakily drawn grid print added the right amount of frazzle to a sweet periwinkle organza tea dress, and a beige-and-ivory-striped bandeau gave a black floral appliquéd top and black-and-ivory-striped skirt a hip vibe. When Rose does straight pretty—a colorful geraniums-on-ivory A-line dress, for instance—it's a bit of a letdown. The same print in a sexier off-the-shoulder, hip-hugging style was more effective. A full circle skirt in afil coupeprint of jagged, mismatched black and ivory rectangles further emphasized that Rose's slightly off-kilter approach is what keeps her brand fresh.
4 June 2013
Lela Rose based her Fall collection on the Brothers Grimm fairy tales she's been reading to her children. Stripped of their Disney sanitizations, the stories Rose thought she knew revealed themselves to be dark, mythical, magical tales—ones that called for interpretation into clothes.So the designer made pen-and-ink drawings of floral scenes, then ordered them woven into citrine and champagne silk-wool blend jacquards. She compiled a color wheel of hues suited to spun-sugar cabins in deep dark woods, like burnt oranges and emerald greens. "It has a mystical, glowing feeling about it," she said backstage, referring to the black and ginger crocheted lace that went into a skirt and cropped trousers. These were styled with a peplum top and short-sleeved jacket, both sprinkled with buttonlike embellishments that enriched the textural mix.In all likelihood, Rose's clients will be most interested in her cocktail attire, of which there was an abundance. A V-neck prom dress in that citrine jacquard looked pretty FLOTUS-worthy (far from the only option for Mrs. Obama). Another dress in rose-tinged white organza practically sighed down the runway, it was so sweet and airy.There were a couple of tinny notes—beading that bristled from the shoulders of one black silk dress seemed too heavy for the fabric, not to mention overdone. The rhinestone necklace appliquéd onto a black dress would seem to deprive the well-heeled wearer the fun of choosing her own cocktail jewels. But the off-the-shoulder floral organza dresses were wistfully lovely, and the combination of a pearl-embellished gray sweater with a lace-and-pearl-print ball skirt felt genuinely fresh. Opulent, yet light, it was almost a fairy tale come true.
9 February 2013
Another season, another artist. Having looked at the work of Jim Hodges, Man Ray, and Joan Mitchell in the past year, that's become designer Lela Rose's inspiration mantra. "I've always collected art, so I like to pick a different artist for each collection," she said at the photo shoot for her first official pre-fall line. This season's choice? Abstract expressionist Clyfford Still. Still's colorful brushstrokes appeared on day-to-night cocktail dresses and on the bottom of the cropped pants that Rose paired with a woven wool and silk paneled jacket. Sequined embroidery dripped from the neckline of a T-shirt styled with a gray matelassé ball gown skirt for a similar effect. Rose imagined that look for the gala girl who wishes to opt out of wearing the obvious column gown or a heavy floor-length beaded frock. Other pieces were likewise driven by Still's graphic hand. Tops among them was a black crocheted-to-look-like-lace number.
4 December 2012
Lela Rose is often inspired by an artist, and this season the work of Jim Hodges was her creative springboard. In a phone call before her show, Rose described Hodges' preoccupations as "the contrasting dualities of lightness and mass, and the frailty of time." Sounds a little heady for a collection of contemporary cocktail dresses, but Rose kept things approachable and pretty. Queen of the darkness she is not.Hodges' spiderweb prints were translated into lace embroidery. A blousy, silver lace tee floated away from the model's frame, light as a web, and a mirrored pattern in black guipure on a white sheath looked sharp and clean. Prints and surface treatments were the main focus here, with simple, nipped-waist silhouettes serving as canvases. One full-skirted organza dress with blurred, dreamy flowers growing from the hem looked like an Impressionist painting come to life. Chain necklaces incorporated into dresses—another nod to Hodges—missed the mark; they felt out of place with the otherwise properly feminine mood. The variety of embellishments here—lace, flowers, chains—meant the collection didn't hang together as such (blame it on Hodges, whose body of work is diverse), but buyers will have plenty of options when spring's party and wedding season rolls around.
8 September 2012
Lela Rose said her new Resort collection was inspired by Man Ray's works during the Dada period, but at first glance, there was nothing particularly surreal about these straightforward, pretty cocktail frocks. Slim-fitting sheaths came in a color-blocked palette of blood orange, taupe, and mint derived from what the designer described as the artist's "lesser-known paintings," as opposed to his famous avant-garde photography. Subtle details like cloth-covered embellished jewels and unexpected cutouts at the shoulders added new interest to Rose's somewhat predictable, "event-driven" fare. No one's going to argue with a classic cobalt blue gown, but we'd like to see Rose experiment more with looks like the "eyelash" jacquard trousers set, which was a definite standout.
10 June 2012
Architecture buff Lela Rose says that her latest collection was inspired by a recent trip to Dallas, where she became besotted with Santiago Calatrava's Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge. As the designer explained over the phone a few days before her show, her aim was to translate Calatrava's undulating, linear sensibility into a collection that married both romanticism and functionality. There were elements of both, in a pretty, wearable collection that benefitted from Rose's flattering tailoring.The palette called to mind the patina that construction metals acquire over time—deep rust, darker magenta, and saturated blacks and grays. From afar, the surface of a pomegranate-pink tieredfil coupédress looked like flowers; at closer range, it resembled patches of peeling rust. Befitting a collection inspired by urban buildings, the silhouette was attenuated and lean. Pronounced seaming gave shape to the clothes, but in a nod to Calatrava's swooping, soaring structures, woven fabrics created the effect of undulating lines. Coats were collarless and dresses' subtle pleats allowed for plenty of movement. For cocktail hour—or a lucky girl's prom—a classic silk cloque dress in ivory had chic linebacker's shoulders: They were sparklingly embellished with cool metal embroidery and pearls. In the past, some of Rose's pieces have suffered from too heavy a hand. Fall's restraint made for a solid foundation.
11 February 2012
On trips to Coney Island with her kids this summer, Lela Rose was reminded of another, earlier trip to the Neon Museum, or neon graveyard, in Las Vegas. The retro signage in Brooklyn reminded Rose of the fragments of old signs out west; she drew her inspiration from their shapes and colors, as well as how they had aged. A neon graveyard sounds a little eerie—depressing, even—but there's not much that keeps the Lela Rose girl down.Though faded, accents of lime, lemon, and tangerine still popped against grainier surfaces treated to resemble rust. A painterly print in purple and yellow looked great on jacquard cocktail gowns, especially the one worn by Eva Amurri in the front row, whose wedding gown Rose is designing. (Mother-of-the-bride Susan Sarandon was there, too.) Using the negative space left by letters in signs, Rose color-blocked on silk dresses and tees; these had a sporty, curvilinear feel that was echoed throughout in curved seams and strong shoulders. A few dresses suffered from an overdose of embellishment. One organza tank dress in electric navy had a midsection of fringe that looked like aSesame Streetcharacter who'd gotten involved with a boudoir lamp. But most pieces had ease and elegance—Lela Rose specialities. You'd never have guessed it began in Vegas.
10 September 2011
Lela Rose rolled up to her Resort lookbook shoot on a two-speed bike. Attached to the back was a vintage pull cart full of flowers she was bringing home for a dinner party for 45 people the following night. Similar blooms in neon colors inspired by abstract expressionist artist Joan Mitchell showed up on a silk shift dress that was the highlight of Rose's collection. Other looks—a party frock with lots of layered tulle and embroidery, a midi-length petticoat skirt with a blown-up horsehair pattern—could prove tricky for many customers. But there were also more approachable items here, including highlighter yellow trousers with a no-frills fit as well as a versatile organza piece that could double as either an anorak or a shirtwaist dress.
1 June 2011
On a recent trip to Chicago's Art Institute, Lela Rose fell for an old flame: Gerhard Richter. Influenced by his hazy newsprint paintings and his technique of scraping paint away from the canvas, Rose took the ideas of his prints and, in the case of paint-scraping, his method, and applied them to Fall. A blurred plaid looked great on a silk chiffon dress with a long, airy train; earlier, for day, a simple sheath popped in a layered print of overlapping hues. The silhouettes had a certain strictness: Shoulders were nipped and tucked, waists cinched, necklines high. The structure was balanced out by Rose's use of diaphanous fabrics; lightweight yarns and chiffon were woven together for an illusory heaviness. On the very clearly pretty side of things, Rose dip-dyed feathers for an ombré effect. They looked best gently trailing off an embroidered miniskirt, like paint drippings.
12 February 2011
Lima is on Lela Rose's travel wish list, and for Spring, in lieu of an actual trip, she paid homage to the coastal city's vibrant culture and colorful handicrafts.Accessories, including Rose's latest collection for Payless, echoed the influence most directly—a wedge sole wrapped in raffia, braided rope necklaces in bright primaries. Less obvious was the opening look, a loomed cotton wrap dress in stone; it was a subtle nod toward Peruvians' knack for making a single swath of fabric look amazing. A neat embroidered tulle that looked like black netting was used in geometric cutouts and layered over a T-shirt dress. Better yet was a laundered-taffeta anorak. It had a lovely sheen and a feminine sportiness that was more appealing than the all-out-girly closing gowns.
11 September 2010
"I took inspiration from my house," Lela Rose said of her latest collection, which the designer presented in her newly renovated Tribeca triplex, with models perched on an expansive dining table that—get this—descends from the ceiling. "I especially like the idea that rooms, like garments, can each occupy their own space but still be connected as a whole," she added.How did she go about translating that concept? A tweed and linen shirtdress featured curved hourglasslike seams that mimicked Rose's rounded living room walls, while strong pops of emerald, royal blue, and lemon paired with neutral hues nodded to the home's distinct art-filled living spaces (which, it must be noted, include a children's theater, a subterranean tequila-sipping-cum-Scrabble room, and—as if all that weren't jealousy-inducing enough—a studio-sized walk-in closet). The strong yet feminine silhouettes will look familiar to Rose's fans. Too bad the jaw-dropping surroundings don't come included.
7 June 2010
The craggy, almost lunar landscapes of the Galápagos Islands—to which she had made a recent voyage—had Lela Rose thinking about space-age style for Fall. "These are notBattlestar Galacticalooks," Rose cautioned, laughing, in a phone interview with Style.com the week before her show. "It's more about exploring the different textures observed in the universe."Surface treatments played a bigger role than usual. Pyrite zippers added interest on the opening look, and constellationlike crystal embroidery livened up a pair of evening dresses. But it was a blousy cinched-waist frock treated to look like it had been lined with pebbles that really made an impression. Silhouettes didn't stray far from the clean-lined sporty-cocktail vein the line is known for; the beading experiments weren't overdone. Other than a gold jumpsuit Rose called Liquid Mercury, which will be a hard sell, this was a solid lineup of special-occasion wares that struck a hard-to-achieve balance between high fashion and accessibility.
13 February 2010
Color is not a new topic of discussion in the house of Lela Rose. This is a woman who named her children Grey and Rosie. For Spring, the designer built her collection from the palette up: a baseline of sun-faded colors borrowed from Alex Katz paintings, layered with sharp notes of saturated summer brights. The first look out, which played the grass green of a boxy anorak off an acid-hued tank, had you hooked, and the second reeled you in with luscious blocks of color unexpectedly stacked up on the back of a seemingly neutral cardigan. Rose added depth with patterned jacquards and prints that were mostly subtle enough to jibe with her sophisticated composition. The standouts were a ghostly batik, supremely covetable in a pair of shorts, and a painterly metallic tweed in sunset hues.Rose sought to impart a beachy quality to her silhouettes, with flat and folded or fluttering ruffles on cocktail frocks, and gowns echoing waves. These are, however, clothes meant for Fifth Avenue, not Montauk. Well, mostly. There was more of a sporty element here than ever, which is always a treat to see in Rose's hands. Now that she's more than adept at keeping her base excited, evolving that side of her work might be the key to snagging new fans.
12 September 2009
Lela Rose is adept at inflecting her sweet, graphic silhouettes with imagery culled from various cultures. For Resort, she was looking at traditional Japanese motifs: An abstract poppy print jazzed up a button-front frock, waist-cinching belts were folded in the hakama style, and a classic L.B.D. came with an obi-like sash. Rose also enjoys juxtaposing casual elements with special ones—she did so here with a cotton men's shirting dress slicked over with clear sequins—but in general she focused less on jeweled necklines and intricate embroidery and more on tactile fabrics. A clean-lined shift with a doilylike lace overlay was particularly strong.
11 June 2009
"It's Jane Goodall if she were chic," joked Lela Rose backstage after her show, which merged her colorful uptown oeuvre with the narrative of a lady entomologist in the rain forest. Goodall studied chimps in Africa, but this is fashion, people, notJeopardy, so Rose's beautiful palette was more Amazonian in nature. She mixed a host of greens—moss, peacock, forest—with exotic insect-inspired jewel tones. At this point, though, Rose doesn't need the natural world to inform her sure sense of color or print. What was most interesting here was to see the designer work more utilitarian aspects into her sweetly feminine look. This collection seemed to be an answer (intentional or not) to how a pretty-dress designer moves ahead when fashion's collective beat is drumming with a harder edge. That was evident in a drab trench in gorgeous ribbed cashmere tossed over a citrine cocktail frock, or even in small gestures like the layering of knits and simple belting of waists that would once have been left loose and boxy. Rose's collection pushed forward without threatening to alienate her clientele, suggesting that she's traversing fashion's jungle just fine.
14 February 2009
Ask any social you see this week, and she'll concur: Survival of the fittest applies just as much to the Upper East Side of Manhattan as it does to the Serengeti Plain. Lela Rose, who makes dresses beloved by the gazelles of the former, is already well-known for embracing color and embellishment, so it wasn't such a leap for her to go tribal this season. As ever, Rose plucked wisely from her source, working elements like a tapestry embroidery or a bib of gold rings into her pretty dresses, which were cut in slubby linens or jewel-tone silks and pleated organza. Inspired by traditional head wraps, she twisted and pleated a pretty pale ikat-print chiffon cocktail dress. This was a strong outing, allowing Rose to both play to her base and explore new ground with slouchy pants and sportier elements—buckled epaulets and a great printed-chiffon racerback tank—that kept her collection from tipping over into preciousness. A glimpse of striped knit added a kick of streetwear to the ladylike fare, too. We'd say Rose is surviving the kill-or-be-killed fashion game just fine.
6 September 2008
"How can I add a sporty theme to cocktail dressing?" was the question Lela Rose asked herself while developing her Fall collection, which she summed up as "Susie Chapstick meets Park Avenue." The designer has been quietly exploring sportif elements for two seasons, but this time she was really ready to scrimmage, dedicating almost a third of the looks—from a goldfinch-colored taffeta parka to a red paillette tank dress with a tank back—to the active side of things. We're not talking about hoodies and sweatpants, of course; these pieces are hardly suited for a suburban soccer game, though they may be just right for the kind of social maneuvering that Rose's well-heeled clients train for.The Park Avenue part of the show's equation is the one that Rose knows and loves best. Fall found her playing with flowers, bows, and feathers—without laying it on too thick. "I wanted to do refined cocktail with more rock-star glamour, like that of a young Jerry Hall," said Rose, referencing her fellow Texan. So, the girly scallops and lace overlays of past seasons were scrapped in favor of more sophisticated ruffles and tiers and subtle shine, which really scored.
2 February 2008
"Katharine Hepburn meets Audrey Hepburn," is how Rose described her Spring look. What, exactly, does that mean? A new sportiness, for starters. The show's standout piece was a bottle-green belted taffeta anorak coat-dress—hardly a new concept, but one that added a peppy zip to the other, more elegant, fare. The same silhouette topped a strapless, floor-length dress with embroidery at the hem, just the thing for a black-tie garden party.The Katharine part of the concept meant more pants than usual on her runway. Rose called them knickers, cut them in cotton canvas or dungaree twill full to just below the knee, and paired them with long tanks or tunics. Audrey came forward in the form of a sweetly feminine day dress in a subtle polka dot; and, for evening, slim, skimming cocktail numbers in Matisse-bright silks with scalloped hems.Rose loves texture. She experimented this season by layering corded or pinwheel lace over linen sackcloth in contrasting colors. "How do you make burlap couture?" was the challenge behind a strapless persimmon-and-ginger number. It¿s the sort of High WASP, lo-fi concept that would have appealed to Kate the Great and, very likely, will to the swans of Park Avenue.
5 September 2007
Lela Rose caught the current mood for sportswear, cutting glorified sweatshirts in cashmere and tossing in menswear fabrics for an extra edge. It was a smart move, because the full volumes of the girlish trapeze dresses that have become her specialty threaten to look like last season¿s trend. Still, the Texan designer hasn't forgotten what made fans of social types like Celerie Kemble and Amanda Cutter Brooks in the first place, so those sweatshirts came with taffeta cuffs, while an oversize herringbone cape had a prodigious drape.Rose also tapped into the inevitable Poiret revival that will accompany this spring¿s Costume Institute exhibition. There was a touch of the twenties in elongated tanks and tees paired with drop-waist full skirts, as well as in unstructured chemises in polka-dot gauze and panne velvet. The French master¿s signature bright colors were here, too. Rose said that she borrowed the marigolds, crimsons, and rococo blues from old, colorized black-and-white movies. Whatever the reference, they were a welcome jolt after last fall¿s more muted palette.
3 February 2007
After a couple of seasons off the runway, Texan Lela Rose returned with a spring collection that she said was designed for steel magnolias: "women with an ethereal quality who are powerful, too." Most of the pieces—tent dresses; tiered pinafores; a lantern coat; full, short skirts topped by blouses with bell sleeves, all in watercolor pastels, silver, and ivory—belong in the first camp. But there was an oddly charming white gown with ruffles down the back that looked like what you'd get if an angel and a stegosaurus got together to make babies.Ten weeks shy of giving birth to her second child, Rose focused on the loose volumes that are shaping up to be a strong spring trend, adding her favorite girly touches. Large crystals dotted grosgrain belts, bands of silver basket weave decorated the hem of a white faille dress, and rose florets bloomed at the neckline of a sleeveless shift. There wasn't a hard edge in the house, nor has Rose radically altered her aesthetic during her absence from the catwalk, but that suits her well-connected customers and front-row pals just fine.
9 September 2006
"If I ever do hard edges, it means I'm on drugs," Lela Rose joked before her fall show. And true to her word, the Texan designer sent out 28 of the pretty looks for which she's known: full skirts paired with trim jackets, cocktail dresses topped with lace, and strapless gowns with jeweled necklines that would have sparkled on her clients the Bush twins at their countless inaugural balls.For day, Rose showed a gray turtleneck with a pink gathered-waist skirt, and a ruffle shirt with pageboy pants, but even those came with a sprinkling of sequins. Evening is where she shines, because that's what her audience demands. A mix of jewel tones (citrine, loden, and bright violet) and textures (metallic herringbones and embroidered Jacquards) pleased all present, including Celerie Kemble's much photographed Jack Russell terrier, Anchovie.
8 February 2005
Lela Rose showed real development in her latest, sophisticated collection. A favorite of well-heeled private clients, this transplanted Texan has gathered some impressive buzz lately, courtesy of her clients the Bush twins. And the clothes Rose showed in the comfy confines of Christie's would clearly delight any first daughter, or even a first lady—regardless of party affiliation.Rose struck an ideal balance between dressy and casual by pairing a white beaded tank with a lacy skirt, and an embroidered top with a full, swingy, ochre skirt. More formal was a white terry cloth suit with a trumpet skirt, and a stunning coat of the same fabric. For evening, there were slip-like dresses and styles with sleek bustier tops, as well as the requisite big-night-out gown with some pouf, all shown atop Rickard Shah shoes.
9 September 2004