Alice + Olivia Spring 2016 Collection: See It. Love It. Buy It… for Festival Season

Images Courtesy of Sydney Reising Creative & Getty Images.

Kaleigh Glaza

When celebrities like Kourtney Kardashian, Ashley Greene, Emily Ratajkowski, Whitney Port and Mischa Barton all turn up for an LA runway show, it is going to be a big event.

This spring, designer line alice + olivia delivered just that, with a runway show in partnership with Neiman Marcus at the NeueHouse Hollywood in Los Angeles. It was the line’s first See-Now-Buy-Now collection with the highly anticipated alice + olivia x Grateful Dead capsule collection paired with limited edition items from the Spring 2016 collection. Taking place the Wednesday before Coachella, designer Stacey Bendet could not have picked a better time, or a more enthusiastic crowd, to debut the line.

Bendet explained, “I wanted what I showed on that runway to be relevant to what consumers actually want to wear, now. I came up with the idea to have the show around Coachella and have the runway looks be based upon things that every girl would want to wear to a music festival.”

And wear it they could! The “See-Now-Buy-Now” slogan meant the line was available online the second the show began, and attendees could purchase the new pieces that evening as well. But if you didn’t get an invite, never fear. You can still strut like an alice + olivia girl. With festival season still going strong this summer, the line is a must-have for fashion forward girls who favor color and comfort. It’s a partnership of colorful, international flavors contrasted against bold blacks in an almost gladiator feel. Western-influenced bright floral patterns were interwoven with Eastern-inspired patterns in all the primary colors that then flowed into the stark black and whites of crisply tailored separates, leading to the show’s closing of bright white dresses that would make a Disney princess jealous. Bendet almost always includes a black & white section in her lines, but this season the colors took center stage for a strong but romantic feeling throughout. And despite the varying color palettes and detailing, all the pieces flowed together with similar roomy cuts and airy fabrics perfect for long days under the sun.

The true standouts were the more formal extensions of the line, including a tailored one-shoulder jumpsuit and full length gowns with sweeping skirts and feminine details like delicate ruffles and swinging fringe. Bendet called these “goddess gowns” and they certainly fit the part, but could still easily be worn with flats for daywear. Showcase those next to dramatic embroidery, studs and accessories like thigh high gladiator sandals, and you have the full gambit of fantastic festival fashion for the season.

To promote such a widely-appealing line, there was no better partner than luxury retailer Neiman Marcus, who carried the line after its limited initial release. Even if women didn’t “Buy Now,” following the show, they could still upgrade their look by picking up more pieces in store.

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“(Bendet) has always been wildly intuitive, with the ability to anticipate her fashionable customers’ wants and desires,” said Ken Downing, Senior Vice President and Fashion Director, Neiman Marcus. “Creating a highly curated, creative, clever, and in-season fashion show, as only Stacey can do, with a Buy-Now-Wear-Now mantra, makes sense for her fashion followers that love and adore what she designs!”

Exclusive styles are available on www.aliceandolivia.com, www.neimanmarcus.com and www.cusp.com. Neiman Marcus Beverly Hills also has a selection of the runway styles, along with several exclusive items, which include two alice + olivia X Grateful Dead pieces.