Pre-collections aren’t a new thing for Victoria Beckham. Resort 2016 is her fourth, but it’s the first one she’s opted to show to the press. “I feel like I know my customer now, what she wants from me,” Beckham said, explaining why she thought this one was camera-ready. So camera-ready, in fact, that Beckham was papped at the airport over the weekend wearing a tunic-and-trousers combo from the collection in a red ribbon tweed. It was something of a personal departure for the designer, who tends to get photographed in skinny jeans or more formal fare. But the VB line keeps growing, so she has to keep on representing.
Beyond that tunic-and-trousers set, the news for Resort included jeans made from premium Japanese raw denim in two cuts (note the special button at the fly), and experiments with sequins and lace. Of the two, the sequins were stronger, especially on a boxy shirt she tucked into straight-leg pants. Beckham also continues to push into such categories as outerwear and knits. Some of the coat shapes from Fall were recut in lighter materials, as was a successful asymmetrically draped dress. Asymmetry was one of her main themes. The collection-opening cape-coat hybrid buttoned diagonally up one shoulder, and cocktail dresses and gowns featured straps that were different from one side to another. Loose, boxy shapes were another big message, but Beckham will never be able to escape her signature body-con dress. You can call it a curse or you can call it a blessing, but that’s what happens when you have such a big hit so early. As smart as the collection looked overall, it was probably hardest to resist a black wiggle dress with a trompe l’oeil white knit tee underneath.
