Reem Acra Fall 2016

 What can be said about Reem Acra? Season after season Reem Acra brings sophistication, glamour, and a unique way of looking at red carpet high fashion.

For fall 2016 Reem Acra was inspired by the world of the femme fatale. One can imagine Salome, Empress Theodora, Mata Hari, and Silent Screen actress Theda Bara, in garments from this collection.

With a nod the lingerie trend that pops in ready-to-wear collections every decade, Reem Acra helps elevate her affection for that trend by adding lots of sequin details, fringe, and a modern sensuality that will appeal to a wide female demographic. There are lots of influences in this collection from 1920s flapper, drop-waist references to Victorian high-collar design motifs to medieval reflections, to a nod to burlesque.

Reem Acra’s design aesthetic emanates from her interpretation of beauty, glamour and sophistication. And that point of view is front and center in the fall 2016 collection. However, what stands out most in this outing is the brand’s injection of a covert an overt mysterious quality to the clothes. This mysterious overlay has been evident in previous collection. (The spring 2016 collection hemmed on a mysterious orientalism.)

That said; the fall 2016 collection’s brand of mystery an allure was of a different sort. The mysterious allure of fall 2016 was clandestine and titillating evidenced in embroidered décolletage dipping to regions unknown and slinky, lingerie-inspired garments with garter peek-a-boo elements.

Standout looks in the collection are Reem Acra’s saffron silk charmeuse dress with lace underpinning, black lace/silk chiffon drew with embroidered overlay,  metallic silver dress with black guipure lace and pewter embroidery, and ebony lace dress with embroidered pewter embroidery.

—William S. Gooch