Gym Dandy

Designer Tom Scott is not shy about his eBay addiction. “I’m on eBay all the time—it’s very inspiring,” he admitted at his Spring 2011 presentation. A recent find was the 1915 Iowa State University yearbook. “The Bomb,” as it is titled, not only gave Scott a trove of classic Americana and sports uniforms to play with in his new collection of knits, it even gave him the collection’s title.

Staged in the gym-slash-theater of a West Village parochial school, models stood in circles tossing basketballs back and forth. Playing on the concept of sporty pieces—T-shirts, leggings, jumpsuits, and windbreakers—Scott tweaked both proportion and material: The sportswear here was oversized and had Lurex woven through the organic cotton and nylon mesh. Instead of the usual track shorts, here was a slouchy sequined pair. Among the usual athletic neutrals, there were pops of safety orange, spearmint, and coral. What was old became new again—and in the case of the T Shirt T Shirt, literally so. It was woven together from strips of vintage cotton tees.