Low-Key Perfection & Exclusive New Balances: AURALEE FW22 Has it All
If I've said it once, I've said it a million times: AURALEE is a brand that you ignore at your own peril. The Japanese label, simply put, kills it every season and its Fall/Winter 2022 collection is no exception.
As usual, AURALEE is well into its bag. The co-ed FW22 runway show, presented during Paris Fashion Week but held in Tokyo, introduced another achingly gorgeous selection of simple apparel.
Or, perhaps I should say deceivingly simple apparel, because AURALEE doesn't do anything the easy way.
Again, the looks are styled as if the models simply woke up, picked out a few daily drivers from their modular wardrobe, and hit the road.
Layers of complementary-colored coats, cardigans, sweaters, scarves, and slacks affect the slouchy ease of '80s back-to-basics dressing, though AURALEE's offering a lot more than seven easy pieces.
Fabrics include AURALEE's staple mohair, a wild herringbone-patterned wool/alpaca blend, baby camel melton, and a touch of techwear via ripstop nylon, nearly all only barely treated to keep the textiles adjacent to their original raw state.
The results make more sense IRL (if you haven't touched AURALEE's clothing in-person, you have no idea what you're missing), but the message can be read even from afar.
AURALEE doesn't dabble in "fashion," that nebulous mélange of trend and cultural clout. Instead, AURALEE affects an air of unbothered anti-pretension, incorporating stuff that founder Ryota Iwai likes (comfortable tailoring, repurposed militaria) rather than whatever's trending.
"Our ultimate goal has always been to create clothing for real people to cherish and wear," Iwai told Highsnobiety. "We want to make garments that exist outside of just the runway, a wardrobe that is wearable and that brings joy to people’s everyday lives as well."
Oh, and I'd be remiss to not mention AURALEE's latest New Balance collab, a seasonal staple by now.
Following Spring/Summer 2022's 2002r collab, AURALEE & New Balance are dishing up a quartet of colorful XC-72 sneakers for FW22, each rendered in plush nubuck colored to match the collection's perfect palette.
