New York Fashion Week: Clouds on the horizon

Heavy grey storm clouds rumbled ominously over Manhattan’s skyline as the spring-summer collections drew to a close, though it seemed unlikely on Thursday that proceedings would play out in any fashion other than a predictable black and white.

And indeed, for Ralph Lauren, this was the case.

Over half of his Mod-infused runway was in monochrome: 60s knitted A-line shifts with oversized cotton collars, a tattersall three-piece trouser suit, and a procession of ottoman ribbed mini skirt sets were playful, yet without much of the lavish, colourful excess that has come to define the brand’s aesthetic – though when the hues finally did emerge (acid Crayola brights like lime green, sunshine yellow and a cobalt blue) they were eye-popping to the point of blinding.

This worked (just about) on a pared-down retro silhouette, but when applied to fussy voluminous eveningwear with frothy lashings of garish silk gazaar, seemed more like a lack of ideas.

Meanwhile, when it came to Francisco Costa’s latest collection for Calvin Klein, the opposite problem held true: too many ideas.

Despite being sharply tailored, opening looks such as a sheer panelled nylon T-shirt with micro-pleated silk skirt felt somewhat dated, while a black twill crepe bandeau with matching pencil midi bordered on 90s minimalist chic, yet also felt awkwardly sculpted, creating the sense of a slightly disjointed silhouette.

Pieces were vastly better when they focused on texture: a monochrome woven mesh dress with wide straps and a lightly feathered trim was an elegant and intelligent step up from yet another evening LBD, and a boxy black and white mosaic latticed jacket – or later, an ivory woven leather and silk racer vest teamed with a stiffened pleated skirt – gave the illusion of rich and varied patterns where, in fact, there were none.

And thus, the circus packed up and headed to JFK – many bypassing the last show by Marc Jacobs in order to decamp to London where the shows begin on Friday. It seems that, for now, New York’s fashion forecast inevitably remains the same – mild and sunny, with a slight chance of rain.