L.A. Fashion Week Fall '05: Sue Wong
Sue Wong presented another vivacious runway show and one more collection of lovely dresses and embellished gowns March 17 at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at Smashbox Studios in Culver City.
Using “operatic” as her key word and piles of ostrich, marabou and coq feathers, Wong invited an opera singer to perform before the show. The designer divided her 60 looks into eight themes, ranging from Venetian to Gothic to bridal. The common thread was a lavish one that wove through jet beading, feather fishtail skirts and clingy silk charmeuse. Wong, who said she believes that less is sexier, created short dresses that fell to the knee in the 1920s flapper–inspired grouping. She did not draw much inspiration from India this time because she said that style is more appropriate for Spring and Summer. But she did hop from Italy to Spain, Japan, China and “a lot of other places in between in [her] head,” she said.
Wong continued to evoke beauty, romance and the feminine mystique. Because she is a constant in eveningwear, it is difficult to identify what is new. “The newness is the combination of how you put it together again,” she said. —Khanh T.L. Tran
