THEY may seem safe, even dull, because Paul Costelloe's great charm is not innovation. It is in doing the ordinary extremely well; working in a narrow field, and still finding ways of making it seem new has to amount to some kind of brilliance. And he is brilliant, but in an awfully quiet way.
His spring collection, shown in Brown Thomas, is a triumph for the classic, and when he does try for a bit of excitement, in colourful wool and lycra, it seems rather a waste of time. This designer is at his best when avoiding any kind of excitement. It just isn't what he's known for.
There are four parts to the collection: classic, classic, classic, and trendy. The last looks like Courreges in the 1960s rather than Costelloe in the 1990s, with brightly coloured zip-up jackets, mean little skirts, and fitted trousers. Unrecognisably by the great lover of crushed linen and pure, hounds-check wools, he seems to be showing off that he can run with the pack and flirt with a bit of urban chic. It is not that it does not work. It is just out of character.
Fortunately the rest is lovely and dull, fabulously collectable, and quite perfect: very characteristic of the designer. Colours are very safe neutrals, with a gentle havanna brown and lots of navy, and a bit of black. There are wool crepes and fine viscose and plenty of pure linens, mostly plain. This is the man who made linen fashionable. Others simply followed, and have probably moved on. Costelloe is still there with the master's touch.
A black, or Havana brown, trouser suit (trousers £150, jacket £225) is an all-time classic. But he is clever enough to liven it up with a bicycle printed silk that, as dresses (£275) and easy shirts, fit in with the linens to create a well-balanced and stylish group.
Cobalt blue, lime or burnt orange linen safari jackets are colour matched with patterned, or striped, silk satin sarongs and tops and show that restraint and understatement never fails with this designer. This is Costelloe in relaxed mood.
Some of his smart city tailoring and the dressage range are much stricter. Dressage may, in theory, be about country life, but is probably more often worn in town. Make no mistake it is highly groomed and very well tailored. Nothing to do with rustic delights. Check wool and linen jackets, which can be worn with matching skirts, or with stretch cotton and viscose jeans, are flexible to a degree. But still smart.
He is using, like others, a new man-made fibre called Tencel, which has a good fall and handle. It is perfect for the strong blue, cherry red and white safari dresses (£125) that sum up Costelloe's great appeal.