Just one day ago, Devon Lee Carlson dropped a new vlog on YouTube titled “I designed a collection with Reformation,” followed by five exclamation points. One of the first comments read, “My show is on!”
A DLC YouTube vlog drop is better than a television episode drop, partly because it isn’t weekly. You never know when it’s going to be, but when it happens, you drop everything just to watch it. It’s like a soothing, long FaceTime call with your best friend. And while Carlson often shows enviable vintage shop hauls, this latest vlog showed the behind-the-scenes process of everything you could buy from her latest Reformation collection that she designed.
Whenever someone like Carlson does a collection like this, there’s sometimes a level of uncertainty over how much involvement they had. But watching the 15-minute clip shows you just how much of herself went into every single piece. The heart pockets of the Kenny Low-Rise Bootcut Jeans was a detail suggested by her sister, Sydney, and best friend, Dean. The Jensen High-Rise Shorts are based on a favorite pair that she lost and couldn’t wait to bring to life again. The back of the London knit dress was intended to be higher up until Carlson asked one of the designers to cut it a bit lower after seeing a prototype so it could have a little more va-va-voom.
“I’m really into emphasizing my feminine side and wanted to show that off throughout the collection by making it super romantic and girly,” Carlson told Who What Wear. “Every piece is named after a real or fictional woman who has inspired me, like Sydney for my sister, obviously, then Lizzie from Lizzie McGuire, Cher from Clueless, and so on!”
Despite the clear references to her favorite films, television shows, and IRL besties, every piece still feels like something that could be entirely you. You don’t have to have a specific style to wear anything. It’s part of Carlson’s entire appeal. Sometimes, those who are deemed “It girls” can be intimidating, but not Carlson. She single-handedly made smiling on Instagram seem chic. She made being earnest feel far cooler than being aloof. It girls can sometimes feel too good to be true, but Carlson seems so real—like she isn't trying to be anything other than herself.
And that’s because you can tell she doesn’t take herself or fashion too seriously. She’s having fun and enjoying herself without trying to tell you how to dress. She just puts on what feels right and styles it in a way that is entirely her. Carlson wears things with an effortless ease that makes you want to do the same. You’ve probably seen people online refer to a piece of clothing or an outfit as “so Devon Lee Carlson.” The way she dresses is so distinct that it has become a vibe you can’t quite put your finger on.
DLC's Ref collab was designed with her favorite items in mind and feels like a consolidated version of Carlson's key items: a cheeky pair of jeans that make your butt look good, the perfect vintage-looking slip dress that you’ll always pack for vacation, a pair of heels with a bow that you can wear to a wedding or for a thrifting day.
“From a design standpoint, we reimagined a lot of vintage pieces from my personal closet, particularly the ones my friends ask to borrow the most,” she told me. “I wanted to recreate that shared closet for the rest of the world. For example, my boyfriend’s mom gave me a beautiful vintage Galliano dress from the '90s that is so special to me. It's one of the few pieces in my closet that is too precious to share, so I worked with Ref to design a two-piece set inspired by it. It has this beautiful scarf that makes it really fun to style and extra emotional.”
The best part? You no longer have to be one of Carlson's close friends to own a piece of her wardrobe. You can just add a piece from her Reformation collection to your cart. (Or if you're like me, you can go ahead and add all of it.) Just make sure to snap a smiling picture in it—ideally while holding a small dog—for the full DLC look.
Shop the Devon Lee Carlson x Reformation Collection
