Over on the west coast in sunny Los Angeles, Latoia Fitzgerald is making a case for a new perspective on tailoring. After just two years of launching her fashion brand, Lionne, the Philadelphia native executed an extraordinary fashion show to debut her FW21 collection.
Lionne’s garden was filled with melanin, celebrities and countless eye-catching ensembles worn by attendees. Jhené Aiko showed up in a blue-striped top paired with a ruffled, slit skirt, which happened to be a look from Lionne’s SS21 collection. Karrueche sat right beside Aiko when the show began giving guests a taste of what was to come shortly after as she arrived in a denim dress from the FW21 collection. Other celebs in attendance included James Harden, LaLa, and Draya Michele – just to name a few.
Model Slick Woods opened the show and set the tone for the great cast to follow as she walked through the garden in Look 1 – a denim set. Chairs were placed strategically along the path creating a maze for all guests to sit front row and experience the show intimately. As the show progressed, I couldn’t help but to think .. is this what LA’s Sex And The City would look like? Oversized buttoned shirt dresses, sophisticated yet flirty two-piece sets and elegant gowns walked down the runway in muted palettes with pops of fuchsia. Although the entire collection was something to behold, there were two specific looks that truly stood out. The first was an oversized, short-sleeved puffer coat in a pleasant khaki green that comes with a matching harness — the mood is certainly genderless A few looks behind was a black ribbed-knit dress sewn with an oversized, white collar that was offset to the side. The fabric was slightly transparent to accomplish the sexy yet sophisticated feel — a signature that Fitzgerald has mastered.
Fitzgerald could have chosen to wait a few more weeks to show her collection at NYFW, but she made a clear statement that she is paving her own path by hosting Lionne’s runway debut in LA. The designer told WWD “I had a few people try to convince me to show at New York Fashion Week, but my team is here and it feels good.” The designer stuck to her heart and it served her well.
Fitzgerald explained that she wanted to stick to the DNA of the brand with this collection, and it’s also clear that she uses herself as one of her main muses. “We wanted to be very clear on what it is we sell,” she said in a release.
The designer is trailblazing her own path in the industry by following a business model that allows customers to purchase the collection immediately after it leaves the runway. That being said, Lionne’s FW21 assortment is available for purchase now on lionneclothing.com.
Bravo, Latoia!
