Style.com

Vivienne Tam

post a comment
NEW YORK, September 10, 2011
By Alison Baenen
"I wanted to transform the elements of a Zen garden into clothes," Vivienne Tam said backstage before her show. "The patterns, forms, and the feeling of tranquillity and lightness." Orchids are a perennial bloom in Tam's collections, and they appeared here in embroideries and appliqués. A white sheath dress had pretty, petal-like sleeves; a slender column of abstract orchids running down the back of a turquoise silk gown was fresh and unexpected. Prints were strong and played well together. A blouse in a hazy green and blue tie-dye—it looked like underwater starbursts—gave a little edge to a pair of cigarette pants in a blue and white bamboo print.

Tam can veer into unwearable territory when her inspirations skew too literal, and some things, like the orchid cutouts on the back of a denim jacket, felt stiff. In contrast, the tap shorts looked dressy and comfortable. One pair, in a tan and white honeycomb print, came draped elegantly across the front, best capturing the sweet and easy, organic sensibility Tam was going for.

COMMENTS

(0) ADD YOURS
welcome ! logout
you must be logged in to leave a comment | join now

Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.

Follow us on Twitter

Loading...

Style File Blog

may 26, 2012

Shopping alert

On Our Radar: Chance

11:05 AM
When I was a kid, my mom used to dress me in stripes, and ever since then, I have racked up a...

Outside sources

Lara Stone’s Star Trek, And More Of Today’s Top Stories

10:05 AM

more from the style file blog ›
Subscribe to Style.com today!