Thomas Wylde gets a new creative director and a new, softer look
Thomas Wylde, the Los Angeles brand that ignited the celebrity trend of rock ‘n’ roll skull-printed silk scarves in 2006, has had a reboot, with a new creative director.
Jene Park, formerly chief operating officer, replaced Paula Thomas, the tough-talking, model-turned-stylist-turned-founder of the neo-Gothic label, popular in the day with Lindsay Lohan, Sienna Miller, Cameron Diaz and Charlize Theron.
Park is a graduate of FIDM in L.A., where she won a scholarship from Maison Lesage to go to Paris to study techniques at couture houses. She worked at BCBG and had her own product development business before joining Thomas Wylde in 2006.
She showed off the new Thomas Wylde at New York Fashion Week in September in a collection for spring 2016 titled “Evolution.”
The brand had been known for high-end leather jackets, whisper-weight T-shirts, silk caftans and scarves with an Alexander McQueen vibe. And Park kept many of those silhouettes but lightened up the mood, using a soft color palette of white, ivory, dusty rose, navy and black.
The print of the season featured X-ray crystals, not skulls, blown up like Rorschach blots on flowing silk blouses, shorts and dresses, some of them edged in studs
Fluid, tailored coats, jackets and mini-skirts in stretch viscose or buttery leather came in asymmetrical cuts, with dome-shaped stud or nickel zipper embellishments. Some pieces were convertible: jackets that had removable sleeves or could be converted into capes, for example. Cocktail sheaths, mini-skirts and crop tops were rendered in laser cut leather or decorated with cross-shaped embellishments for a rock ‘n’ roll edge. (Carrie Underwood wore a crystal-dusted Thomas Wylde mini-dress to the Country Music Television Awards in June.)
“I wanted to change the proportions and give everything a new look,” said Park. “I got rid of all the shoulder pads — no more ‘80s! — and made the clothes cleaner. It’s all about classics with an edge, and luxury but not in-your-face.”
Beginning in November, the main line, priced $300 to $2,500, will be sold in L.A. at Just One Eye. The new Thomas Wylde Los Angeles contemporary line of jeans, T-shirts and sweaters, $80 to $200, will sell at Ron Robinson.
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