Richard Chai Love

Richard Chai's Spring '13 collection was proof that the sport chic trend is here to stay and with that, you need a toned body to wear the designer's body-con pieces. A slew of pastel printed and colorblocked dresses were juxtaposed against cutout details, zipper embellishments, and racerback details injecting an athletic touch to every look. Anoraks were made in every rendition, from soft and silky powder blue jackets to more structured denim. While daywear concentrated on light and airy hues, Chai turned up the volume with his evening options where dresses and separates were dripped in gold lamé, sequins, and multicolored jeweled embellishments. We can already picture young Hollywood lining up for the party-perfect digital print dress adorned with metallic details.

• Trends: Sport chic, cutout dresses, colorblock, digital prints.
• Colors: Powder blue, lavender, citron, white, denim, black, beige.
• Key Piece: The silk printed digital gingham dress immediately caught our attention.
• Accessories: Lace-up wedges.
• Who Should Wear It: To wear this collection with confidence, toned shoulders are a must. Gwyneth Paltrow and Zoe Saldana would look hot in Chai's sporty, racerback dresses.

Richard Chai Love's latest designs were a breath of fresh air: flirty florals, crop tops, cutout dresses, loose-fitting shorts, and statement jackets. Sporty silhouettes also dominated — colorblocked anoraks took the trend to a whole new level, while knee-length spandex shorts further fed into the sporty vibe ( and the men's looks coordinated flawlessly). A-line skirts lent feminine flair, while cutouts hinted at sexy. But that's not all Chai had to offer for Spring 2013; toward the end of the show, there were plenty of evening-appropriate looks — a lamé dress, sequined sweaters, and sheer tops in darker shades — proving that from day to night, Richard Chai Love has you covered.

Inspired by the idea of "handsome femininity," Richard Chai showed a Fall collection that was simultaneously simple, yet statement-making. “I didn’t want to do anything that was tricky,” Chai told The New York Times. “I didn’t want to create looks that were just for the show. I wanted it to be approachable and believable, but also be really aspirational. At the end of the day, it’s pieces that I want people to wear.” Chai's boy-meets-girl vision was interpreted into gorgeous slim-fit striped trousers, structured oversized blazers and coats, cozy knits, blanket-stripe coats, and moody florals. The latter was cut into diaphanous sheer skirts, corduroy pants, and jackets, adding a feminine streak to his city-slicker style. Furthermore, his outerwear was something to contend with; Chai's selection of oversized structured jackets and coats were perfectly tailored and ideal for topping off just about any Fall look.

• Trends: Menswear, painterly florals, blanket stripes, boxy blazers and coats.
• Colors: Dark red, pinks, gray, black, navy blue, brown.
• Key Piece: We loved the multi-colored blanket-stripe dress and trousers.
• Accessories: Black ankle booties and lace-up boots.
• Who Would Wear It: Downtown girls looking to add a menswear-inspired touch to their look, like Olivia Palermo.

>>Fashion's obsession with stripes and florals continues with Richard Chai's diffusion line, Richard Chai Love. The designer sent down an equal amount of striped and floral pieces for Fall 2012. On the floral front, it was mainly in the shade of red, with black providing a strong background. More daring floral pieces include blazers and wide-leg pants, while more subtle florals are found on sheer blouses and frocks. As for the stripes, they were less classic and more edgy, with gray, maroon, and blue combinations on dresses, pants, turtlenecks, and blazers. Traditionally stripes and florals can be super-femme, but this season's offering leans more toward the masculine side with boxy cuts overwhelming flouncy bottoms.

You know that amazing moment when you pull off a sweater and your hair looks perfectly disheveled immediately thereafter? That's just the effect hairstylist Kevin Ryan (for Aveda) wanted to capture when creating the lifted, slightly mussed coiffures at Richard Chai Love.

To create the play on texture, particularly at the crown, Ryan began by spritzing the brand's Volumizing Tonic on models' hair. After blow-drying, he applied Brilliant Humectant to slick back the sides and added Control Granules for extra texture. Then, right before they hit the runway, Ryan switched around models' hair parts to create what he calls a "jump up on the front." The result was pretty hair with a little "strange volume" — sans the static cling, of course. See shots of the lived-in hair up close and learn more about the androgynous makeup and nail looks now.

Richard Chai is known for his downtown cool aesthetic that always has a fresh, feminine spin, and for Spring 2012 the clothes had a distinctly preppy tone. The Richard Chai girl has an inner tomboy — he offered up crisp collared shirts with peekaboo shoulders, cotton blazers in bright orange, and floral biker shorts in response. Known for his layering prowess, some of the most interesting outfits showed jackets with a chiffon back, showing off a draped tank underneath, or silky floral pants.

>> There's no need to ditch your beachy aesthetic in the city — instead, embrace it with our surf- and sand-inspired picks from Lemlem, J.Crew, Adam, and Richard Chai Love. Peruse the slideshow to see what we're talking about.

>> New York Fashion Week brings no shortage of eye candy, and we've sent our intrepid photographer backstage to capture some of the best fleeting moments. A closeup look at those furry, fluffy Alexander Wang sandals, a snap of besties Karlie Kloss and Jourdan Dunn working their Derek Lam gowns, plus more for your enjoyment.

Photos: Greg Kessler

>> The crowd was in a bit of a daze as the Richard Chai Love show got under way this morning at Lincoln Center, starting with strong suiting and flowing into looser maxi skirted looks finished off with socks peeping out of low, chunky-heeled ankle boots. The subdued feeling in the room was echoed by the collection's muted palette of greys, taupes, and moss greens; not until the model Charlotte Free — who, at 5'7", comes in a little shorter than your average catwalker — made her runway debut with her shock of pink hair did things really perk up. That's not to say that the pieces were ho-hum — a violet floral print-hemmed slip dress and paillette-ridden sheer tops ensured that they weren't. And Suvi Koponen bopped down the runway, closing in a near-perfect look of cozy sleeveless coat and long, flowing pleated maxi skirt.