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Talking Knits With Demy Lee

The weather is finally turning with the official onset of Fall, which means it's finally cool enough to begin wearing these scrumptious sweaters we've had our eyes on for months, now. A creative collaboration between Clare and one of our knitwear favorites, DEMYLEE, the collaboration came together over months pouring over samples and colors and coming up with the perfect capsule. We spoke to Demy at her studio in New York to hear more about the creative process and bringing the two brands' aesthetics together.

Q) ) What inspired the collaboration with Clare?

Both of our lines are represented by Franklin St. Showroom and we thought it would be a great idea to come together and design a capsule collection together that would appeal to our crossover customers. We at DL have always admired Clare’s style sensibility so it was a fun project for us to work on together. 

Q) What was the design reference for the shapes?

 We both loved the idea of picking signature silhouettes from our brands and then personalizing them together. We also wanted this capsule to include a full look: not only with sweaters and clutches, but a beret and scarf to accessorize with as well! 

Q) What elements of the CV brand speak to DEMYLEE as a brand and you as a designer?

To me, I think CV products are classic, but still fun and stylish. As a designer and as a design ethos for my own brand, I want products to be practical and wearable, but still fashionable. We never want to be overly trendy, but still seasonally alluring. I always appreciate a classic silhouette in a fresh color, print, or a special material— almost like an update to a wardrobe standby that I love and first gravitate towards every morning!

Q) How did you conceive of the color palette and specific design details?

We had a series of meetings, and we all loved this happy sunny yellow and grass green color and thought it would be a great mixed with the CV blue, white, and red palette. We added the hand embroidered stitching and created special collaboration labels for each of the pieces. The pom-poms were a woolly addition that we added to the top of the beret as well as the CV Foldover and Wallet Clutches (available @ DEMYLEE, only).

Q) When you work on a collaboration, how collaborative is the design process?

We chose silhouettes, colors, and materials together down to the small embroidered stitching on the corner of the sweaters. Clare and her team came to our design studio in NYC and we worked together on fits and final design decisions. 

Q) Does working with an LA-based designer affect the design process at all?

New York and LA may lean towards different trends, but more importantly it was about choosing the right fabrication and materials. We didn’t want to use overly heavy wool yarn for the sweaters and we thought the gauzy cashmere scarves could double as shawls for breezy LA nights! 

Q) What's your favorite piece from the capsule?

I love the Nora sweater in Sun Valley with the shoulder ruffles and the Wallet Clutch— it’s so handy! 

Q) How do you anticipate wearing the designs this Fall?

The Nora sweater with some straight leg jeans, and the scarf can go with everything! It’s so lightweight and I stuff it into my bag in the morning.

(photos: courtesy of Demy Lee)

 

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