“We don’t need no education” was spelled out on a chalkboard at the back of Olympia Le-Tan’s runway. The show was held at the Left Bank’s Lycée Carnot. Lycée, for those of you who studied Spanish, is French for “high school.” We knew what we were in for then, more or less—schoolgirls in uniform. A certain kind of bold dresser will like the sequined skirt with pencils all in a row, lead at the waist, erasers at the hem. And a composition-book print designed by her father, Pierre Le-Tan, had an undeniable charm; it seemed like a logical extension from her trademark embroidered book-cover clutches. Many of the looks were accented with a new monogram. It appeared on belt buckles, caps, the chest of shirtdresses and coats. Le-Tan should consider launching a bespoke business needlepointing initials on her famous bags. It’d do gangbusters, we bet.
But back to the schoolgirls. Grown women in knee socks may be too cutesy for some tastes, but it was all in good fun for Le-Tan. Still, the work was strongest when it wasn’t too literal. A tweed jacket, sweater, and miniskirt woven with neon thread was cheeky in all the right ways.