Kate Hundley appears to be moving into her groove.

After shelving her line in 2020 to take a “COVID[-19] break,” the Latest York-based designer resurfaced for resort 2022 with a splashier tackle the Victorian-infused Americana she’s homed in on since her days working for Zac Posen and Ralph Lauren. 

While that collection borrowed from Madonna’s blip of a Western glam phase within the early Aughts, the singer’s ability to reinvent herself stylistically saw Hundley plug back in for pre-fall. This time, her ‘80s new-wave sound hit the appropriate note. 

“For me, music is a mood ring for underlying feelings and conflict. Roe vs. Wade was overturned the day after my last presentation, so frankly I used to be feeling somewhat offended,” Hundley said.

Cue the fishnet, corsetry and leather.

The latter looked especially slick as an elongated moto jacket with laces. Elsewhere, it was cut into strips and pierced together using metal rings to form a automobile wash skirt and mini dress.

Inspired by Japanese armor she encountered on the Metropolitan Museum, Hundley said she used the technique to explore connection in times of crisis when persons are “searching for support and control to create strength.” The designer who’s trained in accessories carried the theme over into the development of a patent leather top-handle bag, her first under her own name.   

Softening things up were slips — one got here with sequins, one other in raspberry-colored jacquard, and the last in black viscose had grommets trailing the contours of the body. 

Meanwhile, the gathering’s woolen outerwear featured rounded midcentury lines save for a studded chore jacket. Worn over flared black trousers, it laid the groundwork for a more streamlined, cosmopolitan look Hundley should proceed to lean into. 

Strictly direct-to-consumer in the intervening time, she is making the gathering available for pre-order via her website. And while other small designers might vie for the eye of outlets during fashion week, Hundley is not going to be on the calendar come February. 

“The normal months have just change into so crowded… I don’t wish to wander away in the frenzy of the present schedule,” she said, noting how the off-season allows her to higher foster connections and gauge interest as she looks to expand to wholesale.