Understanding the body and it’s relationship to a garment is a core tenet of a fashion designer’s process. For Daniella Kallmeyer, it’s an organic conversation that evolves uniquely with each customer. “I think a lot about how our clothes change your posture, they change the way you stand,” she explained from her Lower East Side studio, relating how her work is meant to help her customer stand in their power. “You put your hands in your pockets a little bit deeper, you slouch a little bit differently. You stand a little bit taller,” she said.
The power of dress is a theme throughout her work, and pre-fall sees her go athletic through her personal experience of being a women’s sports spectator and friendships with players, falling right in line with Kallmeyer’s way of “celebrating intellectual, accomplished women.”
A top with a scarf detail — wrap it around the neck, leave it open, fold it through the blazer update, which uses a single-button closure just under the bust and has longer sleeves — is emblematic of how her pieces come to life uniquely with her customer’s styling choices and energy. Complete the silhouette with a larger pant, like the Clemence trouser; with their pleat they have a wishbone-like shape. It also came in a new denim style, sure to be a stand out on the retail floor.
Fabrications lean into the season with lightness: cotton viscose, satins and cotton poplin, on shirtdresses, miniskirts and a host of super soft knits, some used as sheer layering pieces in neutral tones. Pair them with a new supple clutch bag, her take on the ease of the belt bag.
A subtle sporty bent mixed with ’90s minimalism in breathable fabrics gave birth to another strong collection of pieces for pre-fall, and well beyond.