Inside Bodes New Women’s Clothing Launch

Several years ago, at the 2021 Met Gala, Lorde appeared on the red carpet in one of the strangest and most magical ensembles in Met Gala history. It was a white silk skirt and open-front jacket, beaded with fine metal work and inlaid with cabochons, and she had little white sandals on her feet and a crown, by New York jeweler Jean Prounis, on her head. It’s sexy, it’s weird, it’s posh, and it’s not what you’d expect from Emily Adams Bode Aujla, a woman who famously wore her beloved men’s jacket made out of an old blanket. Lorde looked not only dressed but also decorated. Somehow, too, there is a sense that this outfit, despite being designed for one of the most frenetic events in showbiz and fashion, is actually Lordes. That they have history and personal meaning to them; that he has some sort of deep, enchanting connection to the cloth.

Bode Aulja has made a huge mark on men’s fashion since its launch, in 2016, its jacket and trouser line cut down to simple silhouettes of old quilts and reproductions of vintage textiles. But that Met Gala moment hinted that she had a lot to say about women’s clothing.

Lorde at the Met Gala in 2021.

A year and a half later, Bode Aujla makes her first fully articulated expression of what her world of womenswear is like. Today in Paris, featured on the men’s calendar, he is debuting his first full Bode womenswear collection, a stunning and utterly surprising presentation of evening gowns, formal coats, suits and knitwear. He has made a few pieces for women here and there, mainly for private clients, and of course, women have shopped for menswear. But this show marked the beginning of a universe of women fully realized to complement its men.

Bode Aujla said in an interview last week that part of his motives was because his vision of women’s clothing was very different from what he did with menswear. Most people probably assume they know what women’s clothing looks like, especially since so many women are already wearing men’s clothing, however, I want to show people that the women’s clothing I’m going to design is not the way most people think Bode women’s clothing should be. they would, unless they got really close to me or they followed me through the design process.

Many of his menswear collections focus on his family or loved ones biographical history, such as the Pre-Fall 2022 collection which draws from his recent wedding anniversary, or the Fall 2020 show depicting the education of his husband’s past business partners. Shaker village. This collection was inspired by Bode Aujla’s mother, who worked after college, in the 1970s, on the estate of an elderly elder who wore a 1920s evening gown to eat alone at the enormous dining table. the designer explains about his mother’s employer, and the show is really about how my mother watches this person to determine who she is and what she finds attractive.

What stands out in this collection are drawn from that decadent narrative, particularly its many heavy beading recreations of 1920s gowns and gowns, such as the sheer sage gown with a bronze bodice and skirt and yellow and teal beading, or gold seed beads. A-line dress with a round neckline. (Bode has all of her beadwork in India.) The designer told me she had never asked for an Oscar gown, but one would imagine this would make for a fantastic awards season look. There are also sheer beaded and hand-knitted tops, designed to be worn with embellished trousers, or under a butter-yellow window pane shawl collar suit, or over a bralet made of ribbon and a pair of silk shorts. Unlike her man, and very much like the ensembles she created for Lorde, her outfits are sexy, with a brain, eccentric flair. One of the models wore a see-through sequined skirt with a voluminous novelty sweater. That sweater and others were knockoffs from her mother’s wardrobe, one with a spiky yoke pattern made by Norweigian knitters working historic knits.

The harbingers’ outfits were so beautiful that normal fashion show questions, like whether women wanted to dress up more, or whether they would convince themselves they needed an opera coat, suddenly felt irrelevant. You look at something like a billiard-board green evening coat tied only at the neck, or a heavy burgundy velvet coat dress, and suddenly begin to imagine what an amazing life you would live in that piece: of course You need an opera coat! There are fashion designers who respond to the way we live our lives, who want to make clothes that fit the routines of contemporary life; and then there are fashion designers who suggest a more subdued or elegant way of life, such as Grace Wales Bonner, or The Rows Ashley and Mary-Kate Olsen, or Bode Aujla.

Seeing Bode’s outfit in last week’s FaceTime conversations, I was struck by how collectible it all felt. And not in the usual hot-off-the-runway-grail way in women’s clothing; more like the pain I get from finding the perfect 1970s Saint Laurent blazer, or 1990s Yohji Yamamoto robe, or Schiaparelli hat. You know, that great vintage find feeling, where you get excited about who might have worn these weird and special clothes before and how you can honor them by giving new life to their old pieces. Bode Aujlas clothing is new or reproduction, which makes me think about what Yves Saint Laurent did in his heyday in the 1970s, recreating clothes from history, whether 19th century Russia or 1940s Paris, with the luxury that alluring and passionate. Saint Laurent was a revisionist, who reached for the tangible but then let his imagination run wild. Bode Aujla was more interested in personal history, which is what makes his work so relevant today. Who needs widespread myths when you have your own family history to preserve and explore?

Bode Aujla once told me that he wanted to start Bode to change the culture around the way men dress. He definitely does, for his trendless pieces have built a seductive and unique universe of beauty and taste. Her New York store, located on Hester Street and designed by her husband’s company, Green River Projects, is always buzzing with customers (in fact, last weekend I saw two women buying men’s trousers for themselves), as was the coffee shop they opened. . next door. The space also doubles as a tailor’s, where clients are encouraged to repair their parts. Each garment is also accompanied by a label that explains the inspiration and story behind the garment. In short, her clothing seems to radiate precious historical weight, almost as if her customers are custodians of garments with stories, embedding them with stories of their own. Only the story inside is much more complex (and, in a fantastic way, weirder) and the women’s clothing is richer.

Omen’s growth has been explosive, especially over the past two years. With the launch of womens, she appears to be on her way to creating a new blueprint for American luxury.

Omens of Fall 2023

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Rachel Tashjian is the Fashion News Director at Harper’s Market, works across a variety of print and digital platforms. Previously, he GQfirst fashion critic, and worked as deputy editor GARAGE and as a writer at Fair Pride. He has written for publications including book forum and art forumand is an invitation-only Luxury Tips newsletter maker.