Francisco Costa could not have known in advance that a bitter storm would've blown snow horizontally across the city for most of the morning before his Calvin Klein Collection fashion show. But his collection seemed preternaturally attuned to New York's harsh weather patterns. First off, the rubber soled lace-up snow boots - with silhouettes that were vaguely reminiscent of grungy Dr Marten's but a whole lot chicer in their shiny pony skin exteriors - would have been a welcome addition to any fashionable woman's wardrobe that slushy morning. But it wasn't just the footwear. The whole collection, covered in nubbly knits and wooly woollens, was a treaty on chicly-cosy, cold weather dressing. Costa is a cutter, though, so even though dresses were crafted entirely from what looked like the output of six grandmother's knitting needles, they remained refined with elongated and streamlined silhouettes. Elegant A-line dresses had graphic pleating across the skirts, while funnel neck tunic tops were patched together from multi-panels of knits. Mohair figured prominently into fuzzy overcoats, V-neck dresses and tube skirts, casually blurring Costa's usual preoccupation with flawless lines. The ragged edges ultimately yielded a slightly frayed, not to mention unexpected, vision of imperfection at Calvin Klein Collection. But in weather like that and times like these, it was perfection.
Photography: Jason Lloyd-Evans
