For Ottolinger’s latest runway presentation, the brand’s signature body-skimming moto pants received a reinvention. Departing from the usual stretch fabrics, Berlin-based design duo Christa Bösch and Cosima Gadient intermixed them with non-stretch materials, creating silky trousers punctuated by strategic black graphic inserts that read almost as trompe l’oeil hourglass silhouettes and further emphasized the models’ thin thighs.

With the fabric combo, “you can make the perfect form fit for a nice butt,” said Gadient backstage after the show.

This subtle architectural tweak hinted at the collection’s broader play with structure and form, which inched more towards a bit of coverage and restraint. There were more boxy suiting silhouettes and a muted, earth-toned palette, compared to its typically bright and bold colors. Pink gingham was mottled up with rust splats, and at times the collection whiplashed between cozy chocolate brown knits to neoprene booty shorts.

Yet they maintained their devotion to subversive sensuality and the female form, particularly with a series of paneled and ruched gowns, while others were corseted with American football uniform-shaped shoulder pads that read like added protection for the woman doing daily battle.

Despite the collection’s title of “Girlfriend,” one particularly subversive idea was the designers’ exploration of femininity through reimagined vintage bridal gowns. Salvaged and upcycled into meringue-y pouf skirts topped with t-shirts or just sparkly pasties, they shed their traditional place in ladies’ lore. Less meet me at the altar than at an after party in the apocalypse.

Neoprene harnesses and other sporty elements punctuated the collection, and the duo’s most recent collaborations made appearances. First with Tinder, which sponsored the show, and which resulted in models sporting “I’m With Otto” logo tees and thongs, as well as with Mammut on utilitarian backpacks.

The bulky straps of the latter influenced the emphasis on shoulders that appeared throughout the collection. “It’s such a ‘trippy chic’ collection and I think that sums it up quite well,” said Bösch.