Washington Roberts S/S15

Taught to sew at the age of five by his grandmother, Nigerian-born designer Washington Roberts originally pursued a career in chemical engineering. It wasn’t until his birthday, for which he had nothing to wear, that he decided to create a blazer for himself. That perfect blazer launched his career in fashion and he quickly moved on to design for brands like Tory Burch, Victoria’s Secret and Vera Wang.

His Spring/Summer 2015 collection combines clean, geometric printed silk with crisp pleating. Among my favorites are his flattering-on-any-body-type, expertly tailored shift dresses with quadrant based seams. I especially love how he extended the hemline and added pockets to the striped blue number shown above. And how incredible is his two-toned blue jumpsuit with dramatic floor length skirt?  The juxtaposition of masculine and feminine in the almost cummerbund-esque shape hits the perfect note.  No doubt the Washington Roberts woman is sophisticated, modern and in charge.