Thomas Maier opened this season with a “sea of black”, so many designers find it necessary to build off of black in the fall/winter season. The look is a little dresses up but youthful short in such a severe color palette. One of the looks that really show this mixture is the black wool dress worn with a matching cropped waist black wool jacket. The princess shaped sleeve is cropped short with the collar and lapel lined in a contrasting heavy wool fabric. Then slowly Maier did move out of black showering a series of looks in some dusty colors, like dusty rose, orange and brown. One of the key looks in the dusty color palette is dusty rose silk crepe dress. The dress is tailored close to the torso and flared from the hip in a-line silhouette. Maier twists the fabric around the neckline creating a drape look.

The second section is a series of outerwear pieces in black and moving into more Fall color palette of off white and pale browns and tans. The silhouette is still young but the emphasis is certainly on a short length. It’s frilly feminine with romantic silhouettes in muted shades. One of the standout cocktail dresses in the closing section is a simple straight-line off-white silk crepe dress. The hem of the dress is detailed with crystal beading and the dress has a short sleeve finished with fabric pleated creating draped look on the shoulder. Another key cocktail look from the collection is a short tan silk organdy dress with a plunging v-neckline. The fabrics is synched on the torso and the sleeves are finished with fabric pinned in bubble shape on the shoulder. There was only one pant look in the collection, for evening only, a tuxedo pant with a full leg. I would love to have seen Maier give the BV client a few more pant looks or even a short look for those Indian Summers.

The must have outerwear piece from the collection is a knee-length soft tan leather overcoat. The leather has impression of a honeycomb design giving the coat some texture. The other must have piece from the collection is one of Maier’s evening gowns. A strapless floor-length black silk crepe gown, the black crepe is tailored with the seaming accenting the hourglass silhouette of the gown. The bust line of the dress is lowered with a strip of nude colored crepe finishing off the top of the bust line. While there was a little color in the middle of the collection, it would have been nice to see more color for the evening section. Especially in those young and flirty cocktail dresses in the closing section. One of the strongest statements from the collection is a youthful look for a brand that is known for its sophisticated tailoring and look.

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