Yet, the label—along with the mystique—prevailed, and now with fresh direction from designer Kasia Bilinski, its new diffusion label, Imitation, has a shot at infusing the fantasy with some streamlined sophistication. Bilinski, who has previously clocked in time with TSE cashmere, Richard Chai, Naum, and ThreeAsFour, is drawing from the initial creative heritage of the brand, but with Imitation, she's steering it in a decidedly more wearable direction.
Excuse me if I temporarily veer off my London-centric/obsessed ways seeing as my planning for this NYC trip has verged onto slightly maniacal territory and I’m reading Refinery 29 (‘ello London equivalent?  Wherefore art thou?)  like a woman possessed.  I knew the label Imitation of Christ is no longer designed by Tara Subkoff but I didn’t know her replacement Kasia Bilinski, who has previously worked at Richard Chai and ThreeAsFour has developed a new diffusion line called ‘Imitiation’.

I don’t usually wax lyrical about ‘wearable’ directed pieces but judging from the SS08 campaign pictures shot by Mark Borthwick who is a film maker/photographer who has collaborated with Cat Power and Chloe Sevigny, the ambiguity to the precise nature of the clothes as a result of the lighting does make me intrigued by this diffusion line.  It is also reportedly less pricy.  All the better for me to fulfil my aim of buying a careful selection of pieces with longevity whilst out in New York, taking advantage of the currently pound:dollar conversion and be a little *ahem* grownup with my purchases and all the rest of it.  I can’t see too clearly but it strikes me that there is this interesting pared down quality to the clothes and the materials used in the collection of premium merino wool, Italian silks and cashmere along with an abundance of French seams does all seem appealingly lux-lux, but not in a predictably overly-tasteful way. 

Anyhow, if the point was to be very vague with the imagery and entice people to see what the hell Imitiation is all about then it’s worked and I shall hopefully be checking this out in person.  Or perhaps those in the no can enlighten me as to the realities of ‘Imitiation’ (gosh... the last three words could possibly be the title of my debut film if I so wish to direct one!)