first looks

Preview Chloë Sevigny’s Latest Opening Ceremony Collection

This winter (or as they optimistically call it in the fashion industry, “pre-spring”), Chloë Sevigny is releasing her third collection for Opening Ceremony. We stopped by the preview-slash-tea-party last night, where the presentation was held at the perpetually gated-off sculpture garden of Elizabeth Street Gallery and guarded by an imposing bouncer wearing seersucker pants.

The mix-and-match collection comprises five prints — polka dot, paisley, houndstooth, floral, and leopard — in five silhouettes, all modeled by Sevigny’s friends and fam (her look-alike cousin among them). We’re particularly fond of the boxy swing dresses, which flattered all of the variously sized non-model models. The designer herself wore a leopard-print swing dress, reversible Chloë Sevigny for Opening Ceremony track jacket, and four-inch Chelsea boots while mingling with attendees.

“They’re all prints I’ve worn since I’ve been old enough to buy my own clothes; I keep coming back to them,” she explained, calling the inspiration “early Benetton.” There were nods to the nineties throughout, including a collaboration with shoe brand Nana (“I wore those combat boots growing up,” she noted) and a flouncy puff-sleeve dress.

“I wanted to keep it fun and affordable; it’s streetwear,” she concluded, surveying the wildly patterned scene. Here, as models tottered about the lawn, our eyes traveled to the daunting runway-ready footwear, a collection of five-inch wooden clogs and open-toe heels — worn with socks, of course — and topped mainly with tan napa leather. (Opening Ceremony owner Humberto Leon said it’s Sevigny’s largest footwear collection for the brand to date, featuring more than 25 styles.)

Streetwear, really? “They’re comfortable because of the giant platform,” Sevigny insisted.

Though the collection is heavy on short, layerable dresses, the five prints are also splashed across jackets, Fogal tights, berets, totes, and handbags. A few guys also milled about outfitted in Sevigny’s new line of collaborative T-shirts from the Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation, printed with the photographer’s stylized black-and-white photos. (Leon’s featured an artful, albeit distracting, image of a woman’s pubic region.) When the line arrives at Opening Ceremony in December, we predict the tights — if not the jaunty silk berets — will fly off the shelves in New York. Dresses run $300 to $500 and shoes are $250 to $500. Click ahead to see more looks from the pre-spring collection.

Preview Chloë Sevigny’s Latest Opening Ceremony Collection