L.A. Fashion Week Spring '08: Bradley Baumkirchner
Bradley Baumkirchner, the endearing designer from last season’s “Project Runway” series, debuted his new collection Oct. 19 at The Besant Lodge in Hollywood. Among the crowd were hipsters; editors; and fellow “Project Runway” alum Nick Verreos and partner David Paul, designers of the Nikolaki line.
Baumkirchner said he listened to a lot of Bach and looked at children’s dresses and the ballet when he designed the collection. “I think that the piano and Bach influenced me a lot more than anything,” Baumkirchner said. “I tried to make it a lot more feminine than my last one.”
A classical pianist played while models walked slowly through the venue wearing cute frocks, tops paired with ruffled shorts, and cape-and-pant ensembles. Dresses, including a cream silk taffeta ballet dress with gathers at the neckline and a decorative ruffle, were sweet and childlike. A blue version of the dress had a black bowtie, Peter Pan collar and bubble-ruffle hem. Baumkirchner used mostly silks, linen and waxed linen blends for the concise, focused collection. Colorful toile prints decorated tank tops and blouses, ruffles and scallop hems were key details, and gold metallic jacquards added a French vintage element to trousers and capes. —N.J.S.
