Coach x Tabitha Simmons

It’s an iconic, cutting quote, uttered by a deadpan Meryl Streep in The Devil Wears Prada and referenced every season thereafter: “Florals? For spring? Groundbreaking.”

The words are vicious in their sarcasm, because of course florals for spring is about as predictable as it gets. Florals for fall, on the other hand—now there’s something interesting. And it comes as no surprise that such a move is made by Coach, a brand that has always played on the edges, toeing the line between dutifully giving its clients what they want and coyly telling them what they need.

Created in collaboration with footwear designer and Vogue contributing fashion editor Tabitha Simmons is a capsule collection that perfectly strikes this balance. Launched in August 2019 as a farewell kiss to summer and a welcoming of fall, Coach x Tabitha Simmons features the former’s classic New York spunk with the latter’s evocative femininity in the form of shoes, along with Simmons’s first-ever foray into bags.

The Crossbody 17 In Colorblock With Meadow Rose Print purse, for example, boasts a rose print layered in three colours of supple pebble leather; the Chelsea Urban Hiker boot, meanwhile, has a chunky buckle, Victorian buttons, and bright, cheerful flowers on luxurious velvet. It’s all decidedly fresh and fun, with a distinct use of pattern—the aforementioned florals, along with leopard and snakeskin prints—to suggest equal parts glamour and grit.

And that’s the Coach girl down to the letter, isn’t it? Surely Miranda Priestly would approve.