Fashion Week Wrap: Part 5

Last year, Ralph Lauren gave us denim overalls and floppy hats inspired by the American West. This year: tuxedo jackets and embroidery inspired by China. At his show Thursday morning, Lauren presented a buttoned-up collection that drew on both the Far East and Art Deco. There were high-waisted black skirts and collared dress shirts, bright red silk shirts and necklaces, a luscious green silk evening dress, and a red velvet suit. The China theme wasn't overt—despite the song "China Girl" blasting over the loudspeakers during the finale. It was hard not to think of Michael Chow—the well-known restaurateur famous for his Bauhaus-inspired glasses—when one bespectacled model pranced down the runway. Lauren's family lined the front row–including his daughter-in-law-to-be, Lauren Bush. His wife, Ricky, jumped up to kiss him when he took a bow. As Cathy Horyn wrote of the collection: "It was possibly one of Mr. Lauren's most beautiful shows in a while, a display of confidence and worldly polish."