Al Dente

Dear Friends,

Without further ado, I am pleased to present my newest collection, Al Dente.

A closet alive with memories - living, breathing beautiful memories attached to fibers, shape and movement. Have you ever thought of your clothing in this way? When I began to design this collection I started to reflect on which pieces hang in my closet, which habits I have when making additions and the memories they hold. I started to think about how I purchase clothing with intention when I have a trip planned and can curate the perfect suitcase, or when I am meeting a friend for dinner and give thought to what to wear for them against the light in the dining room. How wonderful is it to remember a beautiful piece a friend wore the last time you saw them? Clothing becomes extraordinary when these pieces, which served an original purpose, begin to spill over into everyday life - becoming something you’d easily wear to the store. Perhaps you sneak a moment to reflect on the first time you wore it. I hope when you look at your closet it’s not just clothing you see, but memories. Or future dreams.

These thoughts coupled with a bit of wanderlust after this year of being indoors, I ran off to the coast of Italy in my dreams, wondering what I would want to wear walking on a cobblestone seaside street headed to lunch. I thought about the shapes that I’d prefer - I’ve been craving flowy bias-cut volume, wide loose sleeves, sharp structure without restriction, length and lastly fabrics that keep the bright sun from touching my skin but still allowing breathability. In reality I’m not heading off to Italy anytime soon, so I’ll be wearing these pieces walking down Figueroa Street instead but I promise, in my head I’m thinking of dreams.

Al Dente features fabrics I have truly searched the world for years to find for us. They are rare, exceptional and unique, I hope you find as much delight in them as I do. I am really looking forward to seeing what each of you selects.

Saluti!

Hand-painted Clamshell Scarf

Deeply inspired by the shapes and lines of seashells while longing for my paintbrushes this year, I spent a few wonderful weeks hand-painting silk for the Al Dente collection. Each scarf, a 26” x 26” square, is made from silk crepe de chine and is individually hand-painted with an oversized abstract clamshell design.

It is a beautifully intense process to paint scarves in this way - clean and abstract compared to watercolor or tie-dye. Each scarf requires hours and hours of preparation for priming, painting, steaming, setting, drying, and pressing. A true labor of love, there are just a few of the clamshell scarves made in 3 color ways - peach, lemon and souris.

$90.

Hand-dyed scarf in Radium

I dreamt of this color for many weeks - a bold and shocking neon hue of a lemon-lime green to pair with other fabrics offered in Al Dente. Unable to find a silk already made in this color, I spent days mixing the dye on my own and hand-dipping each piece of silk one at a time. What an incredible process to witness each piece of silk transforming to neon, each steamed and set safely with white vinegar instead of the use of harsh chemicals. Each scarf, a 26” x 26” square, is made from silk crepe de chine and we’ll call this color radium.

$65.

The Paradiso Top

A cropped drawstring-waist top to style as you please. It features a boxy gathered fit through the body and scoop neck with dropped wide sleeves. My favorite details are the vents at each side seam to style with the drawstrings tied together or separately as shown to create a beautiful c-curve in the front and back.

$200-225.

The Waltz Skirt

A true showstopper, the Waltz Wrap Skirt was designed to inspire movement. The flat pattern of this piece is a gathered swirl inspired by the shape of a seashell. Half lined, it’s sheer from the knee down and is a true joy to wear featuring a clever wrap sash belt construction to style as you please - tie in the front or back.

$285-365.

The Marlowe Blouse

The Marlowe Blouse is modernity at its finest. A classic piece with an incredible modern update from a 1940’s era design. Featuring a striking sharp collar, full length hidden button closure, comfortable dropped armholes with a cap sleeve, generous fit through the body. I love it worn as-is, tucked or tied at the waist for 3 entirely different looks.

$185-200.

The Marlowe Dress

This piece is no stranger. Marlowe successfully debuted earlier this year earning a place in the Al Dente collection when I found this incredible chestnut striped linen.

$295-325.

The Palermo Jacket

A pièce de résistance, I have dreamed of creating a jacket with a drape like this for quite some time. Cut on the bias, this linen mesh jacket is a labor of love. It features a generous sweeping hemline, extra wide sleeves, dropped shoulder, big (optional) pockets. This is a forever piece that takes time to make - after the neck and body are sewn, the bias cut needs to drop overnight before the hemline can be completed.

$325.

The Palma Dress

Perhaps the most glamorous dress of the collection, I had a vision of Sophia Loren in the 1960’s strolling to have lunch at a café on a beautifully sunny day. This collar sat sketched on a notepad for weeks until the dress began to take shape in my mind. Pulling from a past design (the Olympia Dress), I used the shape of the high neck with gathered shoulders and wrap design through the bodice and skirt. Artfully placed gathers sit at both the center front of the 3-panel wrap skirt and along the center back, mirroring the gathers of the back bodice. Completed with a wrap sash belt, I love it tied in either the front or back. The collar is playful with room to style as-is, or one side tucked in for an abstract look.

$295.

The Cleo Tie Pant

Introducing my newest ultra high-waist pant, Cleo is an incredible design. For quite some time I’ve been dreaming of creating an adjustable-waist pant without the use of elastic. I took inspiration from a pair of 1940’s era men’s coveralls and pieced it together with some clever and classic Revelle aesthetic. It features an adjustable tie-waist to wear as fitted as you prefer, slim tailored fit, perfect tapered leg, front zip and hidden button closure.

$295.

The Smock Jacket

The Smock Jacket is a rendition of the Painter’s Jacket from my early days and is for comfortable, cozy layering perfection. Featuring an incredible dropped shoulder, dropped armhole, wide long sleeve, tall 4” collar that is wildly fun to style and front button closure. This jacket is cut straight along the side seams from the armhole to hem and finishes at the low hip while featuring great big rectangle pockets.

$295.

The Frances Dress

Inspired by dramatic 1940’s lines, the Frances Dress is striking in its simplicity. It features an oval neckline with dramatic dropped armholes and drawstring waist for shaping. I wanted to create a perfect and timeless summer dress that is incredibly easy to wear, made from a very special Italian cotton seersucker.

$225.

The Vestige Dress

If there ever was a perfect forever dress, I am really excited about this one. The Vestige Dress features deliberate seaming, belt shape and placement meant to achieve an incredible cinched drape. I love the ease of movement this dress offers due to the flow through the body, comfortable neckline and dropped armhole.

$225.

The Marcel Blouse

Generally speaking, I prefer the fit of men’s clothing. The boxy, non-tailored fit through the body allows for ease of movement, larger armholes and relaxed fit of the shoulder, the ability to wear tied up at the waist, the list goes on. The Marcel Blouse was born from this idea and fit notes were taken from the forever popular Smock top and jacket. This piece features a beautifully simple collar, longer short sleeve that I love cuffed, and long length through the body.

$225.

The Marcel Dress

Following the notes for the Marcel blouse, this dress features an extension of the same fit through the body with the addition of large patch pockets at the hip and optional sash belt.

$325.

The Night + Day Slip

Created to pair with the Marcel Dress originally, you truly can wear this incredibly comfortable slip anytime. Dare I say it also makes the most exceptional nightgown. This design was meant to create a perfect volume that stands away from the body, larger straps to cover bra lines and is as chic as ever with a center front slit at the hem.

$185-195.

The Rêve Pajama Set

Introducing our first pajama for Revelle, I took inspiration from several popular designs. This two piece pajama set features a great boxy top with a wide scoop neck, dropped shoulder, wide short sleeve and length that looks great tucked or not. The elastic waist short is inspired by tap pants from an older era featuring a modern waistline but a flowy and adorable fit through the leg. Sold as a set, you are able to select an individual size for both top and short.

$200.