Tory Burch is launching her eponymous brand onto Malaysian shores! I was one of the lucky few, who had the privilege of viewing the new Summer 2014 Collection within the private confines of White Box Map @ Publika. It was a cosy affair, with plenty of white wine and a selection of hors d'oeuvres to nibble on.

We got to sit down with Courtney Gillan, a Tory Burch PR representative from New York. She was such an animated character, and she described the story and inspiration behind Summer collection so well! It was honestly a real treat to meet her.

The Summer Collection is very much inspired by Tory's garden. She has a very well-known love for gardens, and her own garden – which is where most of her inspiration came from for the beautiful prints seen on most of the pieces in this collection. The main color palette for the collection are greens and whites, with some browns and blue hues in between.

The easy glamour of these pieces though, are of the French Riviera in the late 1960s. It was mostly inspired by Romy Schnieder's character in the movie La Piscine - as you can see from the movie stills below.

You will see some resemblance in style and cut, of the 60s, in her pieces below. It is however, made modern with her lovely prints. For example, one of the prints that was used on quite a few pieces, is a photo of the Queen Anne's lace flowers she took of in her garden. According to Courtney, the photo is used to create small prints, or blown up to create huge, unfocused prints.




If you notice, the venue walls are also covered in the Queen Anne's lace flower prints.

The collection is also based on a sixties style for cut. Shapes are clean; hemlines, either short or long — no in-between. You can even spot some very 60s vintage-cut swimsuit, which is made out of a very modern Italian fabric that not only works to retain shape and its impeccable fit – it is also quick-drying, sunscreen and oil resistant, and provides as good as an SPF50 coverage to the covered areas. Talk about stylish and functional!





Some of her other pieces feature beautiful botanical diagrams and also a sort of 'blueprint' – made out of a repeat of block prints, and some hand-painted ones.







Another one of Tory's inspirations are lattice patterns, re-imagined from traditional trelliswork – that is seen in the dress here – using white against white to showcase a very simple, and yet unique design. Notice the maxi skirt in the photo below as well, using the same lattice pattern.








I really love their accessories as well! These round sunnies are so adorable! And just look at that flower cuff. I like how it's transparent around the cuffs, and with a nice touch of gold!

One hour into the preview, the crowd of fashionistas had blossomed. So I sat back, had some wine and waited for the fashion show to begin.






Cue music. Cue fashion show.






You can see so much that's inspired from a garden in these few looks. I think they are gorgeously paired and the materials used are very suited to the theme. The materials are hardy but also light and airy, which is fit for wear in Malaysia's hot climate.





I am excited to announce that the store would be opening in Pavilion, mid-July 2014. Watch this space for news on the store's opening! :)