A "Quiet Luxury" Brand- What Is Quiet Luxury & What To Look For With A Trained Eye.

So what's all the conversation about "Quiet Luxury?" Well, it's all the talk between this past autumn/ winter 23' runway shows, on your Instagram feeds, and in editorials like Elle, Vogue, Who What Wear, and namely the recent Business of Fashion (BOF) article discussing the television drama series HBO's Succession and the conversation around their use of "quiet luxury" on their series. 

In the article, BOF further discusses how luxury mega brands sales are soaring and the industry-wide shift is opting for a more subtle way of status dressing utilizing "quiet luxury." These low-key luxury indicators are highlighting fine materials in harmonious color palettes, and superior craftsmanship with subtle artisanal design details. Rather than the loud designer logos that were once the norm or the obnoxious in-your-face branding, it's clear that the modern luxury consumer is yearning for low-key luxury appeal. They realize that you will go farther with fewer pieces of high-end staple pieces worth investing in, to build a luxurious wardrobe. In a blog post at Reali New York, I too mentioned this exact sentiment. In a recent Elle editorial piece on quiet luxury,  Harry Archer sites: 

"Quiet luxury is new-age minimalism, with a larger focus on investment pieces and thoughtful shopping."

But what are the design indicators that embody "quiet luxury?" Do you have a "trained eye" to distinguish those little artisanal details that signify a superior made garment? Well, take our Shawl Collar Cardigan here at Reali New York for example, throw this cardigan on, even worn with jeans and sneakers, and this cardigan will instantly up your style game!

When I purchase any garment, no matter what brand or price, I tend to always first turn the item inside out. Here you will see if the seams have loose threads or are ragged and unstable. You can be on the look out for any additional hangtags that give you information about the garment itself, like care instructions, where it was made, and if the brand has any certifications like sustainably manufactured  or if it was made with sustainable fabric or yarn.

At Reali New York, we place a hang tag with our "Italian certification' that states that our Naturalis Fibra yarn is, "100% sustainable , ethical & rigorously natural" and another hangtag that states the tenets of the brand which are -performance, sustainability, and craftsmanship. The collection uses sustainable cashmere sourced from Mongolia and merino wool sourced from Australia.

The yarns are all then spun, finished and dyed in Italy and all garments are proudly manufactured in New York City. These are indicators that represent a well made-conscious sweater.

Additionally, carefully placed onto the interior of our Shawl Collar Cardigan is a hand sewn label that tells the story of the garment accompanied by an artful sketch.

Flip the garment over and examine if there are any distinguishable design details that indicate it was manufactured with a luxurious finish or with an artisanal technique. Our Shawl Collar Cardigan details a beautiful traveling rib along the raglan shoulder line. It has side slits for optimal comfort and ease of movement, natural horn buttons, deep front pocket bags and its' adorned with leather elbow patches. It will stand up to whatever you're up to because it's constructed of a 6-ply fisherman knit rib stitch that has a dense stitch configuration for extra-lux body and it'll to keep you extra warm! Plus- it's customizable with our curated selection of buttons from our design library, like our set of Scrimshaw Buttons that are hand carved and painted by a local artisan in Newport, Rhode Island!

All these little details represent a superior knitted cardigan that will set you apart from the rest and will  instantly elevate your style!

But more than that, quiet luxury embodies an easy attitude towards dressing. People resonate when someone looks effortless and chic without even trying. Archer states,:

"Quiet luxury is defined by its easy elegance."

He furthermore states that it's not about purchasing a lot within each category, rather:

"It’s all about curating a selection of high-quality wearable pieces that seamlessly work with the rest of your wardrobe."

People realized during the lockdown, that they just didn't need so many outfits to wear and that they functioned fine with less.

In the recent BOF article mentioned earlier, it states that "Quiet Luxury" has the :

"If you know, you know' appeal and promises more genuine exclusivity than luxury mega brands."

The article explains that a person wearing this quiet luxurious piece embodies a refined, elevated, effortless sense of style. We here at Reali New York take great pride in our extensive customization offerings that bring a certain exclusivity to our brand that nearly no one else on the luxury knitwear market offers! All these discreet little details represent the epitome of "Quiet Luxury!" We acknowledge that our clients embodies a discerning sense of style... that's why our repeat customer rate is over 60% because our clients know that our collection is a source of effortless elegance that's easy to recognize in a subtle, quiet, luxurious manner; hence quiet luxury!

So "IF YOU KNOW, YOU KNOW,"and NOW YOU KNOW!