An Oscar lady must always be picture perfect. So it was as designer Peter Copping created a mood board pinned with pictures of every beautiful woman ever to sit for a portrait since Marie Antoinette. He seemed to then study every finesse and nuance of their dress and attitude and channeled it all into his fall collection which, even at its most streamlined, was the epitome of restraint and old school luxury. Read as: Not just expensive, but expensive looking.

Even as Copping played with base layers like turtlenecks and mock neck shirts, they were spun to their finest, silkiest and lightest weights then layered under gentle gray jacquard dresses, rich red day suits and fur-trimmed coats and trim skirt suits.

Almost everything stuck to a fit-and-flair silhouette, as if the cinch and bell came to define the very lady-ness of the overall mood. Even a reddish leather dress, which toed the line of cool, still looked ultra polished.

There were only two pairs of pants in the entire lineup. One a busy gold cropped suit, the best a black cigarette worn with a corset-like ruffled top. It showed off Copping’s handy technique and whispered at something a little more perverse than Park Avenue.

But Copping needed to do his due diligence and show some gowns and party frocks. All of which were pretty and nicely turned out, accented with delicate stilettos with gems in the heels. Gowns will certainly be the ODLR legacy, but perhaps smart and sexy day will be its future.

From: Harper’s BAZAAR US