Sadie Williams, fall 2016 – text by Silvia Bombardini

Dear Shaded Viewers and Diane,

 

For all that glitter that isn’t gold, some of it does get real close: there’s a preciousness in Sadie Williams’ work that comes from substance, from density. Her clothes look secure and solid, warmed by their sparkles, and for all their tinfoil shine, never flimsy. That’s because Sadie’s designs are textile-led, but have moved past the tentative marketability of schoolwork. Heat-pressed prints, embossed lurex: nowadays, her experiments are backed by a very sensible undercurrent. For FW16, intarsia knits look directional but cosy, like something that’s easily worn. And if her signature long skirts come this season especially plump, quilted and roomy, there’s also the option of those fine lurex or patchwork kilts, each pleat’s hem embellished with silver leaf, or a tiny metal snap-hook. In bigger proportions, the hooks serve as bags’ handles, anchored to the brand’s seasonal theme: a healthy glow on the models’ cheeks, turtlenecks and mountain boots, the collection was titled Off Piste and inspired by photographs of Sadie’s parents as a young couple on a skiing holiday, and in general by old-school skiwear – from a time before the high-tech, when all sports gear had to do was keep us warm in the snow, and did so in mostly matte, proud primary hues. In Sadie’s parents case, those would have been reds and blues. She makes them shimmer and makes them soft, with a fittingly retro school-disco vibe and the kind of gentleness we reserve to address memories not directly our own, but close enough.

 

Later,

Silvia

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