3.1 Phillip Lim Fall 2012: Duality Show

The Scene: A smoky—make that very smoky—stage in NYC's Meatpacking District. The front row drew musicians St. Vincent and Oh Land, the latter sporting a freshly-shorn blonde bob.

The Soundtrack: We immediately recognized the opening synth strains of College's "A Real Hero" from the Drive soundtrack, which looped throughout the entire show. Nice.

The Look: Lim named two creative jumping-off points this season: superheroes and the notion of duality. The former manifested in the capes and capelike cardigans he showed, while the latter materialized in the designer's almost exclusively black-and-white palette. Two-tone monochromatic sheaths, jumpsuits and jackets were the stuff of optical illusions, both slimming and visually intriguing. Models wore pointed silver collars and equally sharp brogues and pumps, further communicating the designer's message of superhero-like strength. Our only criticism? We would have loved to see more cocktail attire, since Lim does subtly-embellished party frocks better than so many of his contemporaries.

Pieces We Want: Lim's chunky black-and-white cable knits were particularly divine, not to mention ridiculously wearable. And there was a grey-and-navy collarless tuxedo coat that nearly made us drool.

More on Luckymag.com:

• 50 Under $50: Workout Gear
• Donna Karan Fall 2012: It's a Woman's World
• Timo Weiland Fall 2012: Paging Angela Chase
• Tibi Fall 2012: Put a Bird On It
• Tommy Hilfiger Fall 2012: Downton Tommy

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