Economy in design and a focus on natural textiles doesn’t mean you have to settle for a beige palette and austere shapes.

Avoiding those tropes was paramount in the sophomore collection of Icicle Atelier, the premium offering of the Shanghai- and Paris-based fashion brand.

Creative director Bénédicte Laloux said she wanted something airier, with colors inspired by nature, congruent with the idea of taking a breather by looking through the window at the beauty of the world outside — preferably an unspoilt one.

Poppy red, sunshine yellow and blues from light turquoise to indigo deep livened up a basis of summer neutrals. There were even some stripes and a print of tiny florals.

The waste-not, want-not approach that underpins the brand was expressed in myriad ways. Fabrics, of course, spanned a summer-weight version of the fall’s water-repellant canvas, which uses the natural properties of its silk-wool mix and a specific weave; the Gambiered Guangdong silk, an ancestral fabric dyed and patinated using mud and sunlight, and warm-weather friendly natural fibers like cotton poplin, linens and silk crepe.

The collection was full of crowd-pleasers, like jackets and lightweight dusters with comfortable, generous cuts; tunics and midi skirts in a hefty knit that made them polished but easy to reach for; diaphanous silk gauze separates that fluttered with every step.

Meanwhile, dresses and tops mostly riffed on rectangular patterns — a most economical choice in terms of off-cut wastes — gathered, pleated, tucked or belted to achieve flowing shapes.

While Icicle’s stated endgame is a more conscious and considered approach to fashion, Laloux ensured those topics are a breeze to wear for the end-consumer.