Samuji designer Samu-Jussi Koski cut his teeth at Finnish print titan Marimekko, so it’s no surprise that everything starts with the materials at his up-and-coming label. Koski luxuriates in his fabrics, and there’s a veritable menagerie of them on offer for Fall: Italian mohair, Japanese cottons, Lithuanian linens, and even Icelandic reindeer leather. They’re the building blocks with which he endeavors to create that most daunting of things: a complete wardrobe, from maillots to puffer coats. And based on his latest outing? Koski is designing for a life many of us wouldn’t mind getting in on. Clad as she is in mannish trousers and textured frocks, the Samuji woman doesn’t just dress smart—she is smart. The looks are quietly luxurious and straddle the sensible and the whimsical better than most. The former translated into handsome shirting, plenty of weighty knits, and some beautiful wool Breton tops and dresses, brushed so the stripes bled into one another ever so slightly. The latter came through in evening looks like a liquid, metallic column gown and a tinsel-covered carmine shift, but also made its presence known where outerwear was concerned. Koski has a real eye for sculptural shapes, and each swell of a coat felt intuitive and playful. The brand has only just begun to dip a toe into creating custom patterns, but one gets the sense that that’s all the liberation Koski needs to take things to the next level.
—Kristin Anderson
Runway Feed