Reem Acra Pre-Fall 2023 Collection

There was a refreshing pared-back feeling to Reem Acra’s resort collection. While the designer is known for the megawatt numbers that celebrities wear on the red carpet, this season Acra tapped into a retro feeling without ever abandoning her penchant for glitz, seen in the body-skimming emerald gown with gem-encrusted straps and the tan tulle dress covered in gilded sequins. Elsewhere, her signature glimmers were strategically placed on belts and collars, and she shifted much of her focus towards silhouette, as she did with the fit-for-a-deity red dress featuring exaggerated sleeves that stretched to the upper thigh.

Perhaps due to the bohemian mood, many of the looks brought to mind the national and ethnic dress of some Eastern European countries: a shiny white body-skimming down with bishop sleeves and floral-shaped laser cut-outs wouldn’t have felt out of place at a Slavic wedding in the 1960s, while a shift with ornate mirrored embroideries on the chest felt like a reference to the traditional Ukrainian keptar vest. Whether or not these odes were intentional, they added a new level to her designs.