Brava to Georgina Chapman for her bold rejection of restraint, so exquisitely rendered. Fantasy has always been Chapman’s stock in trade, but the fanciful, these days perhaps even decadent, assemblage of tulled, embroidered, frothed and frilled gowns she offered for fall took the notion of glamorous reverie one step further. As if conjuring a little girl’s daydream of grown-up sophistication, Chapman crafted a black tulle mini embroidered with unicorns, which evoked the glittering ice skater’s uniform as eveningwear; a remarkable origami-pleated gown had a princess aura. Indeed, that’s precisely what Chapman had in mind, noting beforehand that she “wanted to make it all about fairy tales.” And she succeeded, beginning with frosty-pink ruffled cocktail dresses and ending with a showstopping crystal-embroidered tank dress. There was nothing precious, however, about these pieces: extraordinarily constructed, with sculpted bows and crystal embroidery adorning straps and bodices, each dress was its own beautiful invention. And lest things get too confectionary, there were some palate cleansers, served up as a sleek crimson jumpsuit and sharp black jacket, its peaked shoulders cut into tiny stars.




