Sonia Rykiel Pour H&M Knitwear Collection Preview

A French colleague and I were trading anecdotes yesterday about how, as kids, we felt bereft that we didn't receive mail the way adults did, when getting mail seemed such a worldly and grown-up privilege. My colleague shared a story about one of her babysitters who, in what was meant as a kind gesture, sent her a letter, which apparently infuriated my then five year-old coworker. "Why?" I asked, thinking that if anything she should have been happy to get a piece of mail of her very own. "Because somewhere inside," she stated practically and with a shadow of her old childhood indignation, "I knew that she pitied me and I thought, 'I don't want your pity!'" Throughout the rest of the afternoon, I kept conjuring an image of a red-faced, Madeline-like little girl, clutching a torn envelope tightly in her fist while shaking it up at her befuddled babysitter and shouting, "I don't want your pity!" The whole episode just struck me as utterly endearing and so very French.

Very French and endearing is also how I'd describe Sonia Rykiel's capsule collection for H&M, the latest in their mostly stellar series of designer collaborations. I had a chance to preview the wares last night at West Village boîte Bobo amid a wallop of fashion scenesters and models (Chanel Iman served as the house DJ). Nathalie Rykiel, Mme. Rykiel's daughter and the current President of the label, held court in a banquette under a barrage of interview and photo requests, one of which she kindly ceded to the Curb. (Look, Rykiel's a serious innovator and trailblazer in fashion, and I've followed her work practically since I picked up my first Vogue as a kid, so don't you judge me [too much] for that slightly manic, I-just-won-Publishers-Clearinghouse grin on my mug.)

My mind already on things French and Madeline, I think the collection itself embodies a style the beloved child heroine herself might have adopted if she grew up to own a bubbly, Dylan's-like candy shop, to which she'd ride a bike with a wicker basket every day. These clothes, too, do not want your pity: they are unapologetically fun and whimsical, and confident about it. Bright and bold colors abound, along with rhinestones, stripes, frills, and bows. Diminuitive cloth purses, breezy berets, skinny patent leather belts studded with grommets, and chunky bangles whose colors mirror that of the clothing make up some of the accessories. Several pieces are adorned with block-letter embellishments that spell out "Mon Pull" ("My Pullover"), which I loved as a wink-wink reference to the collection's roots in knitwear. Gals who go for mod-ish femininity will make a play for a lot of these pieces, and the rest of us will likely find one or two items to pair with and brighten up bland staples, such as jeans, a white button-down, or black pants.

The venue itself featured a bit of beauty and fashion-related detritus repurposed for décor (my blog sister-from-another-mister Felicia and I were endlessly amused by an old school standing hair-dryer-cum lamp); whether that was intentional or accidental, it added a cool thematic dash to the proceedings.And so, kids: that's all there is, there isn't anymore.

The Sonia Rykiel pour H&M knitwear collection arrives in stores February 20. Visit H&M's site for more details.