Yasuko Furuta’s latest offering evoked a feeling of comfort, but not in a conventional sense. Patches of faux fur and sheepskin seen on one of the coats looked inviting at first glance, yet a rigid leather belt made clear that it was a functional piece rather than a swaddling blanket.
Similar contradictions were featured throughout. Another coat, a faux fur-trim style, was decorated with harsh glossy pebbledash on its front panels. A bonded leather bodice and an appliqué sweater were completely open at the back, secured with utility straps. Double-breasted coats with puffed “Victoriana” shoulders had exposed chest sections. Bulbous cropped puffers, items that typically provide cushioned comfort, fit like urgently inflated life jackets. Two parkas—in khaki and black—were perhaps the most traditional inclusions.
The volume and many layers that Furuta added to her looks resulted in a medley of textures: the aforementioned faux fur and sheepskins, scrunched and scratched mirrored vinyl, bold intarsia leather seen as patterns on bags and magazine pockets, and crinkled crunchy nylon in the form of shirting, skirts, and gargantuan “labels” worn as dresses. The nylon in particular was intentionally treated to look as if it had been discarded and “retrieved from the trash.”
Amidst the less wearable show pieces (the label dresses), there were practical moments. Giant-collared shirts and cardigans with built-in satin neck attachments can be tied as scarves, inviting the wearer to style them as they so wish, while a pajama-striped thin nylon shirt featured internal straps on the torso that can be pulled back to reveal what’s beneath, or buttoned closed.
Furuta didn’t look to a specific reference, and instead conjured a three-word dictum to use as a starting point—a habit she repeats each season. “Reveal, inside, liberation” informed every aspect, but was best exemplified by the Toga logos that decorated outerwear, “revealed” from their usual hidden place inside a garment. The designer evolves at her own pace, to an overall positive effect.
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