Nicolette Mason Designed A Dress Collection (& We’re Obsessed)

One of my favorite things about the fashion world is design partnerships. Naturally, I love the affordability a collaboration offers, but what really pulls me in every time is the opportunity to peek into the sartorial consciousness of someone I admire. While we sometimes already have an idea of what an established designer may want to create, there are other individuals, like models or bloggers, who are only given a sliver of time to present a collection that’s their personal expression of what’s missing in the market. The latest lady to open her chic cerebellum to the world is Nicolette Mason, with her debut collection for Addition Elle.

If you take one pass through Mason’s blog, it’s clear dresses are her garment of choice. So, it’s no surprise that the unapologetically girly, seven-piece collection focuses solely on frocks. “It was only ever conceived of as a dress collection, and that made sense to me, since I am really a skirts and dresses girl! Dresses are the cornerstone of my wardrobe and I love styling around them,” Mason told Refinery29. “With Addition Elle, we created dresses that were really comfortable, classic, but had updated details and were made for wearing in real life — that means you can wear your go-to bra; some of the dresses have pockets, and they don't demand crazy shapewear. The idea was to create beautiful dresses that could fulfill a variety of needs — whether it be to work, for date night, as a guest at a wedding, or even prom.”

Mason isn’t just lending her face to the line, though. The Parsons grad worked hand-in-hand with Addition Elle’s design team to make sure that the size 12 to 24 dress collection would reflect her ideas, as well as be in line with the brand’s aesthetic. “We worked with some key silhouettes for spring and built up and down from there, and I infused a lot of my personal-style needs (like collars, rhinestone details, pockets, lace, and of course pink) to the collection, while the merchandisers from Addition Elle helped me keep their customer at the forefront,” she said.

Mason showed us her design chops once before with a collection for ModCloth, so chances are, if you fell head-over-heels for those pieces, you’re going to love these. With overtly feminine silhouettes and details, the collection is super-sweet without being too much. “I love the bodycon with lace straps, I love the cape dress... But the collared shirt dress is probably one of my favorites," she said. "It has real buttons down the front, but also has a savvy hidden zipper, which is perfect for [putting it] on and off easily with or without help! It's one of my favorite silhouettes that works on so many different body shapes, and I'm so excited to wear it everywhere and see others wearing it, too!”

Although you have to wait until February to shop the pieces at select Lord & Taylor stores, lordandtaylor.com, and additionelle.com, you can click through here to get a sneak peek at the much-anticipated styles.