Into the Fold:
Precise Pleats and Modern Ruffles
Photographed by Hanna Tveite
“Function alone does not make clothing appealing,” according to Issey Miyake, who focuses on the “space between the body and the clothes” by infusing movement and the touch of the hand into even the most technologically advanced garments. Now a new generation of fashion designers, including Gabriela Hearst, Atlantique Ascoli, and Samuel Drira of Nehera, is exploring the power of artful folds to enliven streamlined silhouettes. Take a closer look at their finely calibrated flourishes.
“When I start designing a piece, the first thing that comes to my mind is a very strong image, a silhouette, an idea,” says Hearst, whose resort 2017 collection includes a dress sculpted by the structured ruffles of a paperbag waist.
The Frenchman invented the ruffle. The Englishman added the shirt.Ralph Waldo Emerson
- Khaite Alexa Bodysuit (coming soon), Nehera Suri Pleated Skirt
“I am focused on the proposal of the clothes,” says Nehera’s Samuel Drira. “It is about technique for me.” Delicate knife pleats impart texture to a sleek black skirt made striking by asymmetry at the yoke and hem.
Styling Gabrielle Marceca
Hair Takayoshi Tsukisawa
Explore another chapter in The Stories:
Women in Trees: A Charming Genre, Rediscovered
