Last season Andrea Mary Marshall decided to launch an eponymous collection to sit alongside Salon 1884, with the intention of releasing pre-seasons under Salon 1884 and the main line under her own name. Marshall was a fine artist prior to becoming a designer, so one way to think about these changes is that the Andrea Mary Marshall line is the right brain to Salon 1884’s left brain. The former is more emotional, experimental, and editorial, while the latter is more minimal and wardrobe focused. Salon 1884 is what the designer and her friends would wear on a day-to-day basis: “My personal taste level is so Salon, that’s how I dress,” the designer said on a walk-through. “It’s very important for me that [this line] is for women that shop and dress for themselves and that want to feel empowered.”
Salon 1884 might be pared-down and more about solutions than fantasy, but it’s not so precise as to read cold; in fact it’s “hot” as in seductive. For example, brown suede harem pants—shown with a luscious cape, for example—are slit down the side of the leg. Bias dresses are cut to cling, and there are a number of one-seam, Madame Grès-inspired jersey dresses that wrap around the body, not in a way that mummifies it, but one that reveals skin.
Leggings and a nylon poncho add an unexpected sportif feeling, which is intentional. “The Salon girl is healthy and active and takes care of her body,” noted Marshall, who succinctly summarized the brand vibe as bringing together “Issey Miyake Plantation with Kim Basinger [in 9 1⁄2 Weeks] and Working Girl.” Yet an apron dress, button-down body suits, and what might just be the perfect shirt dress—in blue-and-white stripes, with button tabs that allow the wearer to draw in the waist—tap into the American sportswear tradition established by the likes of Claire McCardell, Elizabeth Hawes, and other forceful female designers.
