In the series What I Loved Yesterday, Harper’s Bazaar editors highlight one standout look from the previous day at New York Fashion Week.
I didn’t expect pailettes would be consciously uncoupled from”mermaidcore” on the spring/summer 2024 runways. But I hoped for it anyway.
2023’s resort collections ushered in a fun, under the sea cocktail party aesthetic made up of oversized pailettes and seashells. It evolved from playfully kitschy to juvenile and costume-y in the length of a TikTok. By the time I’d scrolled past what felt like the millionth mermaid outfit tutorial video on my “For You Page” this summer, I craved a detox from sparkles and sequins.
Then came two pailette-spangled looks from Proenza Schouler’s latest collection that were unlike anything else I’d seen this year—in person or online.
Proenza’s collection for next spring refined its emphasis on elegant, slightly twisted everyday wardrobing from the previous season. There was a straight-laced black suit styled with toe-loop sandals and a red mesh socks in a witty twist on business casual, and the classic sweater over the shoulder look reimagined in a slim-fit, knitted dress with a front tie resembling knitted sleeves. (The label also debuted its monogram—a slightly abstract twist of its initials stitched on to sweaters and top handle bags.)
Two pailette looks with the jagged edges and dangerous splay of a shattered mirror were interspersed into the middle of it all: one matching set with a square top and skirt, tied with black ribbons, the other a below-the-knee skirt over a sheer, gauzy fabric belted with a white long-sleeve top. I wasn’t at the show to see these pailettes shimmer in person. But I rewatched every Instagram story including them, twice.
The mermaid sequins I’ve mentally outgrown are smooth and pearlescent, with an Ariel costume sheen. Proenza’s embellishments are icy, unruly, and a little dangerous. They shimmer like a vault of heirloom diamonds and they’re delicately sewn atop wispy, semi-sheer fabric that invites you to reach out and touch them—but they could cut you if you’re not careful.
The two pailette-coated looks broke up a collection defined by elevated wardrobe essentials like blazers and car coats.
This is sparkle that has bite. And amid a collection of similarly wearable yet visually interesting pieces, they make the case for getting experimental with my everyday. Of the two pailette looks, the skirt styled with the long-sleeve knit is the one I want to wear with the same passion I had for Proenza’s strapless red leather dress last season. An all-over pailette garment will always have an element of drama, but this one was not a costume. It’s a template for how a self-assured woman can wear sequins, and in a way that’s too specific to become a -core.
Fashion Commerce Editor
Halie LeSavage is the fashion commerce editor at Harper’s BAZAAR. Her style reporting covers everything from reviewing the best designer products to profiling emerging brands and designers. Previously, she was the founding retail writer at Morning Brew and a fashion associate at Glamour.
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