Color blocking and mixing prints have long been staples in designers’ arsenal of techniques to trick the eye and add visual interest to core items. And in recent seasons, splitting garments into halves has become a norm in denim and luxury streetwear. Martine Rose spliced athletic zip tops in half this spring, while Marni fashioned shapeless jackets out of opposing duvet fabrics.
While brands like Balmain continued to show half and half denim, the trend takes a new direction for Fall ’19 with luxury labels slicing and dicing tailored pieces.
Off-White entered tailoring territory this season with oversized suiting made with two different fabrics, a traditional navy and unfinished checked wool. Juun J’s tailored suit jackets featured both pinstripe and classic checks. Danish designer Henrik Vibskov fused a casual track pant with a pinstriped trouser.
The half and half trend also invited designers to experiment with prints. Givenchy showcased women’s double breasted snake skin coats in contrasting autumnal colorways. Comme des Garçons Shirt updated classic button-down shirts with mix-and-match floral prints, while Junya Watanabe presented flowing dresses made with dueling floral and polka dot print chiffons.
Meanwhile, minimalistic Scandinavian Acne Studio kept it simple with men’s pants with one leg white and one leg black.
And in his final collection for Fendi, Karl Lagerfeld played with contrasts. Men’s suiting was split down the center with one half navy and the other black. Teddy bear-style zip-up jackets features both light and dark brown halves and bomber jackets were composed of black and brown leather. Vogue described the collection as “in-your-face asymmetry.”
