Kaelen Resort 2015

Review by Kristin Anderson
While discussing her eponymous line's first Resort outing, Kaelen Haworth mentioned Slim Aarons' photographs as a jumping-off point. Even with a cursory glance at the clothes, the inspiration seemed surprising. Aarons' tanned WASP aristocracy is a far cry from the modern, graphic appeal of Kaelen's latest fare—happily. Here, there were trim shapes and no shortage of techy fabrics. One ultra-light, lacy laser-cut neoprene was particularly fluid and pretty, and flew in the face of some of its bulky and stiff counterparts. Zip-off flounces were an easier sell than they were last season, thanks to a mainly black and white palette (including a canvas in big, bold stripes that only evoked Beetlejuice a little bit) and one lattice-cut neoprene version in cream with sheer underlay. For Fall, those flounces looked girlish in pink; here, they felt flirty, but decidedly more sophisticated. Pattern was less prominent than it has been in the past, though one abstract floral, which Haworth dubbed a "trippy Hawaiian-shirt print," made its way in. By and large, the looks on offer felt well considered—and a peek at Spring 2015's inspiration board suggested that collection will be promising, too.