Some years ago, the CEO of Saks, a former colleague and retail mentor of mine, asked me how I might feel about changing my career direction to the designer runway universe. Feeling that I was much more suited to trolling street born trends, I told her that hi-fashion terrain didn’t exactly fit with my own merchant instincts. She was surprised, given my leaning towards creative ventures. At the time, I did not really understand that haute couture was an art. I viewed it as somewhat frivolous and indulgent, I was trained in the celebrity status of gross margin returns, the “thrill of the kill”, instant volume gratification, dollars, dollars, dollars. I was not seasoned enough to recognize the subtle impact on cultural shifts that true couturiers affected. I was so wrong.
The product choices a buyer or consumer makes should always be guided by value. By now, wisdom has taught me the real definition of this word: beauty, quality, and sustainability: worthy of investing for posterity. It is why the Skin Lingerie brand holds my attention, season after season. Conceived with an artist’s intent, each piece is draped from fabrics as simple and supple as any malleable material in a sculptor’s hand. Having spent 10 years of my career ensconced in the world of robes, I am acutely aware of why one style is considered more luxurious than another; why it must cost more. There is not much to a robe and so its content and shape reveal its character. Luxury is, in fact, when function disappears within a garment’s form. This piece from Skin’s fall 2016 collection is constructed from a 100% micro light organic fleece available in sizes XS-L. Yes, it is a bathrobe, but has been purchased too, as a coat. Meant for repose, it is, also, irrevocably destined for a woman’s wardrobe collection. It just depends on the buyer’s vision.
“Art Doesn’t Transform. It Just Plain Forms.” Roy Lichtenstein
