Looking back through Adam Selman’s collections, it was about a year-and-a-half ago that something clicked. He got consistent, started carving out signature items. The endearingly unrefined bubblegum bad-girl attitude on which he arrived remained in tact, but everything became more streamlined. At his fall runway show — his strongest yet — it became clear: He’s becoming a brand.
“Baby steps,” Selman said backstage, pointing out the rose-embroidered Chuck Taylors he did in partnership with Converse. “They’re only for the show, not for sale.” Even so, he made big strides in real branding, for the first time developing subtle buttons, patches and rivets bearing the Adam Selman logo for the lineup’s nifty range of denim. All of it — the show-opening biker jacket that tied at the waist and cuffed jeans; a great wrap denim trench; a cowgirl shirt; a workwear jumpsuit with a fitted top and wide legs — was classic stoned-washed blue, embroidered with red roses. A big inspiration was the 1975 book “American Denim,” which focuses on folky, hippie-ish customization of denim. Selman’s versions were fresh and cheerful with a mild western vibe — in line with the current moment of novelty, faux DIY’d jeans without feeling desperate to cash
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