Ask and ye shall receive… Rhetorical lamenting about the state of knitwear in my Vancouver review posed a question about yarn-based fashion possibilities: is there a functional space in-between “ugly sweater” and avant-garde designs? Ton-in-Ton, a young brand by designer Olga Novik, explored the middle ground in her fall-winter 2015 presentation during Belarus Fashion Week in Minsk. The requisite sweater dresses kept their inevitable shapeshifting on the gracefully feminine side. Yet it was the woolen lacework that stole the show: cocktail party sized or gala scale, these looks exuded the rare authentic kind of stylistic/stylish warmth. Had I been the target customer, I’d rush to pre-order. Alas, am not and the brand lacks an online retail platform anyway. Not for long, I am sure/I hope. Ton-in-Ton garments by Olga Novik are must-haves from the realm of knitwear.

P.S. I covered Belarus Fashion Week on an assignment in 2012 and loved many of country’s designers (Ludmila Tarakanova, Historia Naturalis, Boitsik, Apti Eziev) including Lena Tsokalenko who just showed her latest collection in Moscow. I look forward to the fall when organizing committee promises to return week’s full production format instead of a handful one-off presentations this season. I heart Belarus.