If the ’90s girls had Miu Miu, today’s generation has Sandy Liang. The designer who’s held the internet in a chokehold with the coquette-core trend for the past two years is now declaring that to be out, so instead next summer expect every girl in New York and beyond to dress like spies, except of course with the Liang touch. “I’m obsessed with a uniform. I’m especially obsessed with spy gear this season,” said the designer. “The spies in Totally Spies! always had gadgets and clothes that were cute but it was actually like a laser or something serious like that. I thought that was fun to explore for the season.”
On the internet, Liang is known to best influence the crowd of ages 27 and younger. When her Baggu collaboration dropped, you not only saw the bag sell out within minutes thanks to its affordability, but those who missed it began to recreate her pieces so they could also look like the Liang girl on a budget. However, the brand’s best customers are not the high schoolers who wish to look like a Liang girl but the 9-5ers who can afford the pieces. The label’s collections in the past few seasons have skewed more childish, with school-inspired pleated skirts, but this season, the Liang girl is growing up and taking her first baby steps into the real world. She may have gotten her first corporate job and is dressing business casual on top with a short-sleeved puff blazer and capri set, but she’s also channeling her youth with a metallic pink kitten-heeled mule. She may not understand the importance of carrying cash (just in case of emergencies), so instead she’s leaving her house with no bag but a mini skirt with a hidden zippered pocket for only her driver’s license because her credit card is on her phone.
Liang made things simple, utilising a jersey fabrication for most of the collection. Going out mini dresses came in fun colours like Barbie pink and candy apple green but in basic silhouettes: when paired with the right accessory, like one of the new sequinned chokers that debuted on the runway, the look was elevated from day to night (best represented by looks 13 and look 31 in the collection). A Liang collection is never complete without some satin, and this season some of the tunics worn as dresses during the show could double as coats when worn with the jeans also shown on the runway.
In an intriguing statement, Liang ended her spring/summer 2025 show notes with the line, “Each piece is password protected; only you can unlock it.” Even though Liang herself is dreaming of a spy girl summer; perhaps it was a subtle hint that you can feel free to create your own fantasies in her designs.
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Look 6
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Look 7
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Look 8
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Look 13
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Look 14
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Look 24
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Look 25
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