Something Different Is Happening at Tory Burch

The designer's Fall 2022 collection was, for lack of a better word...pretty cool.

There are a lot of words one could use to describe Tory Burch, most of which are similar to: timeless, classic, sophisticated, preppy. But — respectfully — "cool" is one word that hasn't been used much when discussing the American fashion brand.

I don't mean that in a bad way, of course. First of all, coolness is completely subjective; second, not everyone aspires to coolness. (Nor should they!) It's just that, beginning with the Spring 2022 collection, something different started happening at Tory Burch. The designer is still building on her lexicon of American sportswear, and there's definitely still artistic influences, but the clothes also look, for lack of a better word...pretty cool.

For Fall 2022, Burch notes that she was inspired by the women in New York City, "explored through the lends of shape, geometry, color and convertibility." You can see how the different women Burch might have seen on the street combine together and then refract again, Dr. Strange-mirror-dimension-style. (Yes, I did spend the pandemic getting caught up on Marvel movies.) The opening look features a tracksuit jacket combined with fitted slacks and a sequined scarf — not necessarily elements you would think of together.

The sculptural shoulders from the previous season find a through line here in floral jackets and wool coats, and continue in origami folded corsets and off-the-shoulder knits. There are also a surprising amount of beading and embellishment. More expected for Burch is the color play: a spot of acid green on a brown maxidress, for example, or a purple and red harlequin print on a polo.

The styling definitely lends to the overall shift we're seeing. Burch brought back Brian Molloy to work on the Fall 2022 show. (He also styled the Spring 2022 runway, as well as some pre-collection lookbooks for the brand.) And, as José Criales-Unzueta pointed out, Molloy works with fellow New York luxury labels Proenza Schouler and The Row.

It didn't necessarily all work — I'm still trying to decide how I feel about the beaded corset with a flip of a peplum paired with a car wash skirt, which is a lot of look, in my opinion — but it's always interesting to see a designer as established as Burch try something new.

See the complete Tory Burch Fall 2022 collection in the gallery below:

View the 33 images of this gallery on the original article

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