Ralph Lauren Ready-to-Wear Spring-Summer 2027
Ralph Lauren adores women, and this show proves it
By: Carolina Castro
Ralph Lauren’s muse is an easily recognizable one.
She’s an easygoing yet meticulous woman, who looks effortless despite the fact that she put hours of work into teasing her hair to achieve the perfect level of lived-in frizz. She’s cool and classic, putting her own twist on traditional styles. She can seamlessly transition a white button-down from hiding under a tailored blazer, to half-tucked into vintage denim, paired with a casual loafer… that ran her $1,000.
For his Spring-Summer 2027 ready-to-wear show on Sept. 9, Ralph Lauren allowed the girl of his dreams to finally let her hair down (metaphorically of course), bringing out fur, metallics and low-cuts. She leans into her wild side, trading in her corporate pinup costume for a sexier, carefree version of herself — think Penny Lane from “Almost Famous” meets Holly Golightly from “Breakfast at Tiffany’s.”
“Spring 2027 is an irreverent take on romance that creates a new elegance,” Lauren wrote about his most recent show. “It’s about ways of dressing that celebrate ingenuity, originality, and character—the freedom and fun of creating a style that is truly personal.”
Held at the Jack Shainman Gallery in Lower Manhattan, the room acted as a bright and fun, yet refined, backdrop for what I would call Lauren’s best collection yet.
Floor-to-ceiling windows let in natural light that shone upon the models, while white marble columns allowed for even the most muted of colors to pop.
The show opened with models donning angelic new takes on classic styles. The first look, a cropped white three-quarter length sleeve top with corset boning, created a structured yet edgy appearance. It was complete with a pair of tailored white trousers that included button detailing down the bottom for a novel means of breathability in an otherwise constrictive pant style.
While Ralph Lauren is usually known for his Classic American looks with Polo collars popping out of cable knit sweaters, he experimented with texture and patterns extensively throughout this show.
He continued shaking things up as the next model followed in pinstripe pants, a fitted white vest adorned with a pocket watch and… a fur-lined jacket!
Next up was a look fit for the Kentucky Derby, complete with an in-your-face floral brooch, an even louder pocket watch, once again, and pants with an added train resembling bridal wear.
Following the modern takes on classic white outfits, Lauren delved back into what he knows best: clean-cut suits and form-fitting dresses.
Eventually, though, we caught another glimpse of his adventurous side, as a tan suit was paired with a low-cut, borderline completely open, black blouse and fringe trim. A classy, yet sexy, nod to beach formal complete with a woven hat to block out the sun on those UV11 Nantucket boat days.
While still true to the upper-class Northeastern fantasy, the look had its own twist that gave it true character; you can fit in while still standing out.
As Lauren said, he creates looks that celebrate originality and personal style, and he’s doing it in the way he knows best. Staying true to himself and the designs his brand is known for, he is still presenting cutting-edge pairings that are exciting to see.
His love for women continued to shine through as models wearing gorgeous gowns took over the runway: the sheer floral dress of my dreams, a coral, open-back maxi dress that fit the model like a glove and a sheer pink Organza midi-dress that reflected the natural light of the venue perfectly.
While still refined, the dresses were free-flowing and perfectly captured the “romance” and "ingenuity" Lauren intended for this show. Like most pieces from this collection, they celebrated women’s curves and different body types, and some even hid the models’ figures to purely focus on the artistry of the piece rather than the body wearing it.
Between these were more traditional looks that could go from beach to dinner wear in a heartbeat. Afterwards, however, came a stunner of a golden dress, pictured on the right: the bust made of an embroidered lace, complete with an intricate floral design, and a jaw dropping reflective, yet understated, gold bodice that flows effortlessly — paired with large teardrop earrings.
The Penny Lane fantasy continued as the show progressed toward one of the most experimental looks, in terms of Ralph Lauren.
It consisted of a fur-trimmed, hand-painted jacket tied together by tasseled strings, with nothing underneath. The jacket was paired with perfectly distressed jeans held up by a gold chain belt, complimenting the model’s gold pumps, and a wooden-handled bag to top it all off.
The gold motif was seen once again on a later model who wore my ideal skirt, containing ascending gold scales, paired with a navy trench coat and white blouse collar that only covered the mere midline of her stomach, leaving nothing to the imagination.
Once again, Lauren perfectly captured elegant sexiness in a way intended for women to actually feel beautiful, rather than objectified in.
Many fashion houses today place far too much emphasis on the female body as a vehicle for sensuality rather than an artistic muse. Current emerging brands like Edikted or Doll’s Kill sell the fantasy of a perfectly small waist and large bust with their branding and imagery, rather than focusing on how different people would look in their actual clothing.
To see an iconic fashion powerhouse intentionally use the best fabrics and patterns to flatter their models, while still placing the actual item at the forefront of the consumer’s mind, is incredibly refreshing.
Next came what might be my favorite look of all time: gold open-toed heels, navy straight-leg trousers that are just fitted enough and the most beautiful gold top I have ever seen. Low-cut, like most of the tops in this show, and flowy, yet flattering; this top is everything I have ever wanted and more.
It is embroidered with gold beading, tied around the waist to give it shape, and complete with gold tassels hanging off that look intentional yet effortless — a true Ralph Lauren masterpiece. Extra fabric hangs off to make it look as though it was made from an old scarf that someone managed to tie around themselves perfectly.
The styling of accessories and chic, unkempt wavy hair adds the final touch to my favorite look that summarizes Lauren’s creative direction for this collection.
The final looks of the show were flowy and maximalist, completely unlike what you would expect from Ralph Lauren. Tied together by their plunging necklines, Lauren ends the show with a dramatic royal blue blouse and maxi skirt set, gold, straight pants paired with a messily-tied open robe that any self-care connoisseur would dream of and yet another phenomenal Organza maxi dress in the most whimsical shades of pink and blue (invite me to your next gender reveal party so that I could wear this, I beg of you).
What was, in my eyes, the perfect show, ended on a bang that I would have never expected. Ralph Lauren, this is my formal plea to you to never stop loving women and showing your adoration through your designs.
The care, precision and artistry demonstrated in this show give me hope for what has become an oversaturated, and at times, disappointing industry. What a revival!
Carolina Castro is a third-year Marketing and Mass Communications student at UF, hence, she is broke. Someone buy her that gold top please!!!!!!!
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