Rachel Comey, who attended Miss Porter's School in Connecticut before studying sculpture in Vermont, could be described as a homecoming queen of the arty downtown set (one of the Marsden girls modeled for her Fall lookbook). And the designer's Spring show, staged at St. Patrick's Youth Center on Mulberry Street with live accompaniment by the three-piece band Barbacoa, had something of a prom atmosphere. After looking to the Amish for inspiration last season, Comey said she wanted the current collection to be "playful and a little bit naughty." High-waisted flower-sprigged shorts worn with pretty blouses and modest jackets still had a pinch of Big Love plainness, but bustiers paired with slim, cropped pants and dresses with lingerie details added a hint of Grease-style sauciness. Seemingly demure dresses had racy T-backs. The show, which focused primarily on texture, was somewhat repetitive and overlong, though it also offered proof that Comey is graduating to new levels of maturity.
