At Andrea Karg's Allude, cashmere is not treated with the deference usually afforded to luxury materials. Pushing the boundaries of what knitwear means, the German designer has harnessed her star material into something more than just sweaters. In this exercise, her work spoke loudest when it steered away from cut-and-sew shapes usually associated with woven fabrics.
The prettiness of ruffled collars caricatured innocence and sweetness, but the long wraps that draped across the body echoed the nonchalance seen elsewhere this season. Many of her cashmeres looked blowsy, their surface marred with a myriad of tiny bobbles that roughened the texture. The pale palette could have perhaps felt a little washed-out, yet it echoed the tones of the marble floors for a play at sophistication. Used as large "washes" as full pieces slid against each other, it ended up being too quiet. Far more interesting were the stained glass effects that climbed from knits to furs. Just as fetching were the thick knits pop-over dresses that gave creamy white definition to otherwise basic silhouettes. This season, accessories – folded clutches with shaggy trim and low-heeled shoes in a sugar-almond palette – also caught the eye.
Karg's love story that started 20 years ago with the perfect V-neck sweater continues. As all love stories, it can hit a rough patch, but it'll endure.