210: Period-drama dressing for spring

Four outfits tracing the vibe shift into warmer weather.

It’s been two months since I first attempted to qualify the “vibe shift.” The way people dress—or the way a few people who influence the way many other people will dress in the coming months and years dress—had broken away from the convenient buckets previously etched out for classifying such things: quiet luxury, ‘90s and ‘00s redux, prep.

Suddenly there were rows of narrow buttons on waistcoats, leather drawstring satchels, spindly berettas and flat-topped hats, pins and brooches, ruffled collars, priestly robes, elbow-length gloves. These tells of a new style called to mind the deftness and opulence of Renaissance-era layering, monastic vestments, and blousy gentlemen on horseback, all of which, taken together, became to me “period-drama dressing.”

First iterated on in mid-January (though present albeit unlabeled as such in my outfits for months prior), the look was primed for winter, with knightly cloaks and foulards and such. But what does period-drama dressing look like for spring?

To answer this question (which was posed to me directly through the chat), I was heavily influenced by Alaia’s SS24 collection. Pieter Mulier is the visionary at the tip of the V formation leading this movement, and if there’s any house I’d trust to help me wear fewer clothes, it’s Alaia. Since my original period-drama dressing coverage, there have been a handful of FW24 collections teased during fashion week that also, absolutely, belong on the moodboard: Altuzarra, Colleen Allen, Niccolo Pasqualetti, and Carven chief among them.

I sketched out a few outfits that both abide by the rules and break them, because I am bad at prescriptive dressing, even when it’s my own prescription. Below, four outfits that (mostly) capture period-drama dressing as the vibe shifts further into spring.

Alaia Deep Back Sleeveless Bodysuit, $880 / Naked Cashmere Karlie Wrap, $215 / Aeron Sculpted-Button Tailored Shorts, $385 / Little Liffner Pillow Shoulder Bag, $575 / vintage YSL pumps (similar from eBay) / Dorsey Leonora Link Bracelet, $280 / Hernán Herdez Single Abrazo Earring, $239 (in silver) / Casa Shop vintage ring

With Alaia so central to the advancement of the period-drama agenda, I bought a too-expensive bodysuit straight from the inspo board that was my North Star in styling this shoot. It was nearly $1,000 after tax and is maddeningly special for just a cotton jersey-knit one-piece—whether that makes it worth $912 more than this Skims bodysuit or $964 more than this Los Angeles Apparel one is up for each to decide for themselves.

This lightweight Naked Cashmere cape sets my somatosensory cortex abuzz. Its soft, almost cool composition lends a little extra coverage over the…let’s say buxom…bodysuit while being sheer enough to let the (intended) details beneath speak. And it drapes like a marble veiled sculpture.

Jacquemus Les Sculptures 'La veste Ovalo' Blazer, $1,485 / St. Agni Sheer Linen Tie Top, $270 / Marie Adam-Leenaerdt Ribbed Cotton-Blend Turtleneck, $490 / Mugler Balloon-Leg Pants (similar from Toteme, $283 $480) / Emme Parsons Hugo in Carmen Red, $515 / Lemaire Filt Net Shopping Bag, $220 / Ayllon Sonia Ring, $135

This suit is also Alaia-esque, through cobbled together with parts I was attracted to independently of this theme and years apart: my new Jacquemus jacket acquisition and a many-seasons-old favorite pair of Mugler pants (long gone, but check out these on-sale Totemes instead).

What makes this read “spring” to me is the ease of the supporting characters—Lemaire’s relaxed market bag, Emme Parsons’ tropical red heels, even St. Agni’s open-front linen shirt, which dips down to expose the whole length of the breastbone if not for the Marie Adam-Leenaerdt top I have on beneath (any turtleneck will do).

Sophie et Voila Linen-Blend Midi Dress, $720 (on preorder) / Bouguessa Ounassa Handbag, $780 / Enzo Bonafe for Officina Del Poggio Classic Mary Jane, $698 / Studio Deve Santo Sospir Bangle, $650

I was excited to discover Sophie Et Voila a few weeks ago on Moda Operandi. The Spanish bridal brand recently expanded into RTW and is bringing with it its extreme fussiness for quality and finish. Surprisingly, this hasn’t translated to the price gouging the nuptials industry is notorious for. This simple but not basic black linen dress is currently on preorder for $720.

Officina Del Poggio, which makes these hand-stitched leather Mary Janes in collaboration with a historic Bolognese shoemaker, pays as much attention to its footwear as Sophie at Voila does to its clothing. These Mary Janes are relatively new to me, but there was no break-in period needed for them to be entirely comfortable; it wasn’t until reading about the brand’s sacchetto construction, which includes a “sock-like” soft leather interior, that it occurred to me how much can and has been done in the name of giving the best possible experience to the wearer. We let ourselves get robbed of effort and consideration way too often.

Lauren Manoogian Double Knit Trench, $670 $950 / Doen blouse (similar, $148) / vintage Moschino cigarette pants (found in size IT 40, $70 and size IT 44 in red, $125) / Emme Parsons High Throat Ballerina, $515 / Savette Bucket in Clay Suede, $1,190 / vintage hat (similar from Amy Downs, $110)

After living in my Lauren Manoogian double-knit trench in black melange all winter, I finally turned around and bought a second in mushroom (and a size up). The larger fit of this version is definitely more robe-like, which I play up by folding the sleeves and sometimes wearing the belt lower at the hips rather than cinching it at the waist. It’s hilariously friar-like in the context of this post.

If you couldn’t tell, the latest Altuzarra show was a big influence in putting the final finishes (ruffly Doen top, vintage biretta) on this look, but this is otherwise a version of the outfit I wear every day lately. The Moschino pants, which I realize you can’t see much of, are my version of the High Sport pants. They’re a great-fitting cropped carrot cut like the ones both of my grandmothers wore in their own ways, are comfortable to wear and lay flat under clothes, and I’m casually collecting them in additional colors. Oh, and mine have a heart-shaped button on the side zip. Must be a good omen.

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