For the past couple of seasons, NYFW has actually been a sea of bows– bows on clothes, ribbons in hair, bow prints, tied-up ballerina shoes, and even bow-on-bow stacking. And while bows may no longer be the device du jour in 2024, numerous of the style folk have actually doubled down on the coquette appearance, swapping or styling their bows with other girlish designs like stockings, satin ballet flats, and rosettes.
After a decade at the helm of her name brand, Sandy Liang knows who she is and who she creates for. She calls her consumers “princesses” in her collection notes (a nickname I’m sure they love– I know I do) and has the extraordinary capability to quietly forecast and create trends that echo throughout the industry at big with subtle grace. She even nails her fans’ influences (Sailor Moon), likes (pale pink), and dislikes (anything self-serious) because she shares those preferences herself.
” I much like what I like,” says Liang, dressed in a navy turtleneck sweatshirt and expensive-looking slacks, from backstage after the launching of her Fall 2024 collection. “Regardless of what age I am, I always gravitate towards certain things from my childhood, and that, I guess, stimulates girlhood for a great deal of individuals.”
When she debuts a collection featuring, state, attractive bra tops and demure matching skirts, which was a sensation at her Spring 2023 show last fall, a couple of months later, you’ll wake up to a city full of ladies wearing (and imitating) her styling choices on dates at Casino and beverages at Le Dive. Her previous 3 collections have actually gone hard on the bows, and as an outcome, so has everybody else, with knockoffs and riffs on her signature design multiplying faster than you can state in the name of the moon.
Her most recent collection, which debuted Sunday, February 12, might be called a departure if you’re a fashion treasurer– or rather, bow counter. Gone were the luscious, giant bows of seasons past, changed, rather, by sophisticated separates decorated with just the tip of a ribbon on the back. Relaxing knitwear with rosettes and varsity details (“for my New England college women,” says Liang) changed attractive little pinafores. Even the setting, a pared-back studio on the west side featuring just a pale yellow curtain as decoration, was less of “a vibe” than her previous collections shown in storied places like the American Academy of Medicine.
“I was actually nervous about showing a collection that is, let’s say, the least ornamental,” she states. Evaluating by the broad smiles and passionate whisperings from the crowd after her program, Liang’s worries are unfounded.
Standouts from the group consist of a highly desirable pair of ballet-flat-inspired boots featuring the best tiny bow at the toe (Why has no one idea of this before?), a play on ’90s matching that consists of a subtle bow surprise on the back, and bubble miniskirts galore in different lengths and prints. Plus, a gorgeous lady-who-lunches set of gowns in pale pinks and luscious creams provided retro glamour that still felt contemporary– and which will undoubtedly find themselves on It girls like Blackpink’s Jennie Kim and Olivia Rodrigo in the months to come.
The crowned jewel of the collection? A Sailor Moon-inspired mirrored star clutch, which marks the designer’s first foray into leather bags, is the must-have follow-up to her much-talked-about and perpetually sold-out Baggu collab. It’s the sort of declaration device that makes ladies lose their minds in its pursuit and will no doubt be all over street design pictures and FashionTok this fall.
You see, Liang’s magic touch isn’t feeling in one’s bones her method around a bow. It’s her capability to straddle wearability and statement-making with her styles. “Comfort is such an essential thing. If I’m designing for myself, and I live in New York, and I’m walking … it has to feel really real.” Sandy’s women, both the designs she sends out down the runway and the people who use her, bring their handbags wearing gloves in the fall. They get innovative with layers when it begins to chill, choosing a skirt over pants, socks, and a hoodie to remain cozy. They need windbreakers and huge pockets and sweatpants come fall simply as much as they do little skirts and sailor dresses.
If you’re forecasting what all the fashion prominent will be wearing next season, anticipate not a cacophony of girlish ruffles and ballerina bows however rather a sophisticated mix of glamorous essentialism and elements of the unanticipated. Because after 10 years in the game, Sandy Liang is all grown up.
