J. Crew’s collection brings a dose of reality to Fashion Week

  • By Samantha Critchell Associated Press
  • Thursday, March 7, 2013 9:52pm
  • Life

J. Crew’s seasonal collection at New York Fashion Week is a bit of an anomaly: Most people know J. Crew, and many can afford to buy the clothes.

It shows how New York Fashion Week, while staged largely for editors, retailers and stylists, has become a bit more democratic.

Insiders might place a few advance orders for key pieces that were previewed, such as the rose-gold camp shirt, metallic floral polo shirt and sweatshirt-style cashmere sweaters and skinny pants.

Most people in the crowd probably rarely visit a mall or even Main Street, but they were buzzing about the outfits.

The luxury of working for J. Crew, said womenswear designer Tom Mora, is that there’s room to offer new inspiring pieces that mix with the classics the brand is built on.

He can fill the windows for fall with all the colors and textures he fell in love with during a trip to Marrakech, but somewhere, on some rack, will be the boater-stripe T-shirt the customer comes back for.

Increasingly, he added, consumers are using the company’s catalog (now called a style guide) to get their own ideas about how to put an outfit together.

“What’s crazy is that people in the past would bring in the catalog and ask, ‘Where is this sweater?’ Now they’re coming in and asking for the look head to toe. … We don’t dictate how to wear our clothes — it’s always a suggestion — but the nice thing is people are taking the suggestion.”

At the preview, models were wearing floral pencil skirts with classic British herringbone scarves. A classic double-breasted navy blazer was cropped and decorated in gold embroidery.

The menswear, even at fashion week, was a bit more tempered. Frank Muytjens is in charge of that side of the store: “It’s always an evolution in menswear, never a revolution. We include the iconic pieces and update them for a modern guy, not a trendy guy.”

The models on that side of the room wore a gray wool-flannel, button-down shirt, and a waxy green trench with a traditional corduroy collar. One wore a suede shirt with his tweed suit.

Muytjens said he recently returned from the British countryside. “I visited Oxford and Wales, and there was so much dignity. I wanted to take those elements home and then do what we want with it.”

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Life

Brandon Hailey of Cytrus, center, plays the saxophone during a headlining show at Madam Lou’s on Friday, Dec. 29, 2023 in Seattle, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Lynnwood-based funk octet Cytrus has the juice

Resilience and brotherhood take center stage with ‘friends-first’ band.

FILE - In this April 11, 2014 file photo, Neko Case performs at the Coachella Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif. Fire investigators are looking for the cause of a fire on Monday, Sept. 18, 2017, that heavily damaged Case’s 225-year-old Vermont home. There were no injuries, though a barn was destroyed. It took firefighters two hours to extinguish the blaze. (Photo by Scott Roth/Invision/AP, File)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

Singer-songwriter Neko Case, an indie music icon from Tacoma, performs Sunday in Edmonds.

Sarah Jean Muncey-Gordon puts on some BITCHSTIX lip oil at Bandbox Beauty Supply on Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2024, in Langley, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Bandbox Beauty was made for Whidbey Island locals, by an island local

Founder Sarah Muncey-Gordon said Langley is in a renaissance, and she’s proud to be a part of it.

Dominic Arizona Bonuccelli
Tangier’s market boasts piles of fruits, veggies, and olives, countless varieties of bread, and nonperishables, like clothing and electronics.
Rick Steves on the cultural kaleidoscope of Tangier in Morocco

Walking through the city, I think to myself, “How could anyone be in southern Spain — so close — and not hop over to experience this wonderland?”

chris elliott.
Vrbo promised to cover her rental bill in Hawaii, so why won’t it?

When Cheryl Mander’s Vrbo rental in Hawaii is uninhabitable, the rental platform agrees to cover her new accommodations. But then it backs out. What happened?

Byrds co-founder Roger McGuinn, seen here in 2013, will perform April 20 in Edmonds. (Associated Press)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

R0ck ‘n’ Roll Hall of Famer Roger McGuinn, frontman of The Byrds, plans a gig in Edmonds in April.

Mother giving in to the manipulation her daughter fake crying for candy
Can children be bribed into good behavior?

Only in the short term. What we want to do is promote good habits over the course of the child’s life.

Speech Bubble Puzzle and Discussion
When conflict flares, keep calm and stand your ground

Most adults don’t like dissension. They avoid it, try to get around it, under it, or over it.

The colorful Nyhavn neighborhood is the place to moor on a sunny day in Copenhagen. (Cameron Hewitt)
Rick Steves: Embrace hygge and save cash in Copenhagen

Where else would Hans Christian Andersen, a mermaid statue and lovingly decorated open-face sandwiches be the icons of a major capital?

Last Call is a festured artist at the 2024 DeMiero Jazz Festival: in Edmonds. (Photo provided by DeMiero Jazz Festival)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

Jazz ensemble Last Call is one of the featured artists at the DeMiero Jazz Festival on March 7-9 in Edmonds.

Kim Helleren
Local children’s author to read at Edmonds Bookshop

Kim Helleren will read from one of her books for kids at the next monthly Story Time at Edmonds Bookshop on March 29.

Chris Elliott
Lyft surprises traveler with a $150 cleaning charge

Jared Hakimi finds a $150 charge on his credit card after a Lyft ride. Is that allowed? And will the charge stick?

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.