6:00 PM The Salon COSTELLO TAGLIAPIETRA
Two things happened that made Friday particularly worthwhile. One was getting a picture from legendary model Pat Cleveland at Zang Toi (a doll, but more on her later on) and the other was the
Costello Tagliapietra show. Last season, they presented a focused collection of skillfully draped dresses and caught the eye of Anna Wintour, Barney's and the CFDA and have been on the rise since. Both of their grandmothers coincidentally worked for Norman Norell, and their elegant heritage shows more and more. This time around, the burly, bearded Brooklyn-based duo broadened their range to include more separates and a few tailored pieces and impressively refined their collection making it one of the most sophisticated of the week, and one of the sexiest. In a season that looked like someone had turned off the color switch, Jeffrey Costello and Robert Tagliapietra presented only a few black pieces, opting for a mix of dusky solid blues, bricks and earth tones. It wasn't a crayon box, but it was refreshing to see designers who hadn't abandoned color. Their restraint was impressive, rendering obsolete so many dresses we have seen this week with too many extra swoops and swags of drapery. They managed to express more style with a few well placed tucks and gathers than the yards of pleated trims that have paraded in front of retailers and press this week. Just when a dress might seem too simple, the model would turn to reveal a well placed slit or gather that would make the difference between plain and striking. The show was partly sponsored by
Solstiss/Bucol, the French couture fabric house, which accounts for some of the richly textured cloqué fabrics used in the new tailored pieces and also set the pair's ambitions squarely at the upper echelons of luxury. If they continue in such an assured direction, those ambitions will be realized in no time.
Celebrities: Debi Mazar
