18th Sep 2006
New York Fashion Week Spring 2007: Jay McCarroll
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Please click photo above to see full gallery.
For his first (non-reality TV produced) runway show, Jay McCarroll had high expectations to live up to: as season one winner of Project Runway, he already has a devoted fanbase that has been watching him closely and anticipating this show for a year (and were cheering before the models even walked), and he sets a precedent for the potential success of other contestants. Jay himself set high expectations by promising to transport us from the street to the clouds. Such build-up almost invariably results in disappointment, as one can almost never live up to the hype. But in true Jay go-against-the-grain McCarroll style, Jay blew us all away with a collection that showed no trace of performance anxiety. Instead, it was a collection that reflected Jay himself: larger than life, colorful without being obnoxious, refreshingly candid, and irresistible to love.
Jay was true to his word: he did not take us to space, but kept us hovering in the sky—his collection remained higher than the street, but did not enter the space age either. It was instead a futurism rooted in present street style, with a nod the mod past. Jay’s models walked down the runway with an uber-cool attitude, posing nonchalantly in front of the camera as if to say, “Take my picture if you must.†These are the clothes that are for the street, but still unattainable—only the hippest of the MisShapes and Cobrasnake crowd will be wearing these.
Jay’s greatest strength is his ability to use color—bold colors—and not be loud or obtrusive. The shades of chrome in chevron (inverted-V) prints deepened from top to bottom, lengthening skirts and dresses. Several color block coats, turtlenecks and dresses had varying hues of a turquoise or orange that blended together seamlessly.
Jay’s ingenuity and mischievous approach extended into all parts of the collection: metallic trousers were tight enough to be mistaken as leggings; cuffed leggings with side buttons had the tailoring of trousers. Jay used geometric shapes to underline his playfulness: an iridescent blue circle-cut poncho resonated with the audience who had just shuffled in from a steady rainfall. Thin wire composed looped and squared necklaces. Jay’s signature circles within circles appeared on shift dresses and tops. A necklace with white ducks was worn backwards, filling the void space of a lace top with a low back cut.
Jay also presented menswear—a savvy business move given his already captivated male audience—easily worn separates such as silver track jackets, striped tees and vests can all be picked up piecemeal or worn together.
And always true to himself, Jay did many things larger-than-life: orb-like sunglasses that would shield any celebutante’s face from the paparazzi and a skirt with grommets large enough to poke a thumb through. A balloon formed by wire hanging from the end of a necklace was so large that it needed to be carried in-hand.
Jay McCaroll has shattered the “reality curse;†soon his stint on Project Runway will be incidental, something mentioned as backgrounder to a designer who stands all on his own.
ALI MANNING
Posted by Ali @ 12:56 am
July 3rd, 2007 at 10:16 am
[...] ?? 60?? ???? ????? ??? ?? “mod”?? ?????. Jay McCaroll? ??? ????. ? ? [...]