He may be just 26, but Charles de Vilmorin has a charming, old-world air about him. At a time of the great fashion mash-up, he continues to speak of outfits as being for day or evening, exactly the way Marcel Rochas would have done in his heyday, 70-odd years ago.
Backstage just moments before a presentation in a hewn-out building on the rue François 1er, the designer described his fall collection as “sort of a story about a woman who loves going out, partying, and who through her clothes needs to preserve that energy and hold onto memories of a really festive atmosphere.” Sort of the way one might throw a man’s wool overcoat over a tulle gown to meander back home through the streets of Paris at sunrise. In the City of Light, there’s no such thing as the walk of shame.
Framed as a “sentimental journey through the ’50s,” the collection emphasized high contrast and showed De Vilmorin’s potential as a colorist. Lingerie references refiltered from the archives included the improbable pairing of a yellow-toned, glossy python-print leather bustier and a lush brocade in Wedgwood blue and silver. A Deco-leaning jacquard of De Vilmorin’s own design riffed on Les Triplettes de Belleville, “the energy of 101 Dalmatians,” and his own pup, Terreur. A coat in that jacquard was paired with a woven gold Lurex gown. A skirt in the same material was shown with a navy zippered rib-knit cardigan. The designer clearly has a sense of occasionwear—a raspberry bustier dress had an air of Old Hollywood sophistication—but overall this short presentation conveyed a sense that De Vilmorin is doing what he can with limited resources. Given a bit more latitude, he could probably really start going places.
