PAUL & JOE – Fall Winter 2017/18

PAUL & JOE - Fall Winter 2017/18

PAUL & JOE: The Honor of Sophie’s Humor

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March 13, 2017

By Marcellous L. Jones

Photos by Alexander Kozhin

Paris, France – At Paul & Joe, the key to understanding the women’s collections has always lain in knowing a bit more about the house’s founder and artistic director, Sophie Méchaly. If you have the chance to knowing her she evolves, then you will always have the insight to deciphering her work and the universe that she has worked to create over the years.

Sophie Méchaly loves music. But beyond that, she is an open and optimistic woman of good spirits and of a genuinely joyful nature. This is her personality and this translates systematically into her work, which is after all for happy people. And in her new collection for Fall Winter 2017/18, we see her infusing a healthy dose of insouciance into her creations. And with it, this humor brings romantic fabrics, prints and bold, optimistic colors.

Though the season is for the colder months of the year, we find the garments baptized in lively colors of Crayola green, pink, deep indigo, etc. as they cover the fabrics of lace, velvet, cordoroy, knit, lambskin leather and denim. This last material is fashioned into jeans and total looks with lines of hand sewn pearls as embellishments. The trousers are cut with generous proportions, the blouses are feminine and the jackets enjoy light tailoring.

Among the first looks to truly get this writer’s eye is the loose-fitting track suit with short cropped jacket in black velvet. Like top of its hooded counterpart. Though it appears to be for an active city dweller. However upon a closer look, it is clear that the true objectives of these looks’ is to make its wearer chic, but in a casual manner.

Paul & Joe also offers a divine black total look of a silk dress, lambskin coat, and boots and a handbag also both in coats in lambskin. These pieces are embellished with little flowers. This is Mechaly’s way of saying that flowers can exist in even the harshest of winter temperatures. But on the pratical side, she creates sweaters using a very large knitting technique.

Sophie Mechaly loves prints. So in addition to the roses and other small flowers in this collection, we also find some looks with big lips in various tones of pink and rose. These lips would also reemerge later in the collection as sequined embroideries in other pieces. And the embroideries would go on to include colorful thread embroideries done on white sheer materials that are used in the white suit. As a counter to this, we find a velvet tux with black lapels and amply cut legs that flair out progressively.

Once the show was over, the overall message behind the collection became clear. Though winter is inevitable, one can be bear with good humor, a smile and lots of colors.

FAVORITE LOOK: Black lace top with pearl and gold highlights. It is worn with amply cut tuxedo pants in black crepe.