Simply Abu Dhabi Magazine XVIII

2 3 3 S I M P LY A B U DH A B I modern, more dynamic, more real – I wanted it to be made available to a wider audience.” Eschewing strict historical accuracy to instead embrace an imaginative amalgamation of styles, the historical sprawl of the collection spans influences from the 1700s onwards. Simons takes 18th century French royal court attire – for both men and women – and similarly synthesises and mixes ideas from the uniforms of pilots and astronauts, even schoolgirls and skaters. The effect is clean, modern and completely new – it’s a collection that plays with volumes and shapes but still looks effortlessly sleek, chic, and unforced. As the Robe a la Française – a variation on traditional dresses of the 18th century and an amalgam of styles mostly worn with a new form of panniers and T-shirt bodices – morphs into a flight suit, so too the masculine court coats of the 18th century segue into the street aesthetic of skater’s shorts and the fluid formof flared dresses. Sinuous, long line coats with an Edwardian origin travel through time and history, resplendent in heavy washed silk satins and thick calf leather.