SEA FALL 2023

This season, the designers riffed on the idea of “handcraft.” It made for one of their most reassuring outings to date—and looked ready to jump off a poised side, as they returned to more of the classic-like styling of Spring collections. Polished was the word they used to describe this collection. “This season’s hero pieces represent a change in the codes of tailoring as we take a step towards a new era of polished bohemia,” Paolini and Monahan noted. Cool or not, they deconstructed the lineup by serving a throughline used to reimagine timeless classics with a nod to the androgynous attitude of ‘90s streetwear and loose tailoring. Sea offered plenty of pieces to turn frowns upside down. Some were fun, and included track pants lined with a crochet side panel, dark denim jeans with cut-out detailing and a tweed skirt with lace slit and a fringed maxi dress.

Separates included long, color-blocked skirts in fresh monochromes and structured silhouettes, teamed with leather details and dresses stitched with Indian embroidery saturated in earthy hues for a nature-like effect. Color-blocking seems to be the biggest trend of the season, and Sea’s muted tone-on-tone proposals are lovely additions to the creative canon: continuing to play with proportion while juxtaposing severity and experimentation, this season’s most successful venture was a defiance that breached into the silhouette, “revealing crescents of bare skin, we celebrate the natural shape of the body.”

The shift to the body continues through narrow volumes that skim the form, producing a mix of sporty and elegant staples that oozed freshness across the board. But for all the oppositions at play, there was a rack of impeccably-cut, gently volumised outerwear that needed no apology at all. At least, for the Sea aficionado.