“When Alex and I put together the collection, we talked a lot about making sure we had clothes that didn’t feel over-designed or overcomplicated, that were relevant to today but not trendy—that you could wear forever,” Sikhounmuong tells Glamour.”Very last minute, an idea popped into my head for a jumpsuit. I was actually on a trip [to] L.A., and I went to a vintage store and found an old flight suit.”
It was a lightbulb moment for the designer, who took the concept and modernized it for the Alex Mill spring collection: “We tapered the leg, gave it a bit of waist definition, added some tabs, and just cleaned it up and made it a little bit more relevant to what people are doing these days,” Sikhounmuong says. The team also used a fabric that was lightweight and stretchy, something you can’t always find in vintage.
The response to the Standard Jumpsuit was strong for the get-go, Sikhounmuong says. “Even with the press appointments [before the collection dropped], we were seeing a lot of editors and people coming through and asking about that piece—when it was going to come out, how it was going to fit… When we finally launched it on the website, it quickly became one of the top styles that people were clicking on and purchasing.”
Every time I wear my jumpsuit, someone makes a comment—and even if unprompted, I’ll share the story of where I got it and who designed it.
Since introducing the Standard Jumpsuit, Alex Mill has also released a few variations on the silhouette, including a collarless one and a cargo-esque version that’s been worn by Tracee Ellis Ross. (And really, could there be a better endorsement?)
I’ve even convinced colleagues to get in on the jumpsuit action. Shanna Shipin, Glamour‘s commerce editor, first came across Alex Mill’s Standard Jumpsuit via Nikki Ogunnaike’s ode to it on Elle.com, and then started noticing it on Instagram.
She didn’t actually add it to her, though, cart until she got confirmation that you could wear it as a petite person. (Hi.) “I’m 5’2” so I lost all hope in finding a jumpsuit that actually fit me—and didn’t have a crotch that hung below my knees,” she says. “Seeing it in person on someone my height was all the proof I needed that the jumpsuit is actually an IRL version of the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. It looks so good on everyone. Now I’m in the sisterhood and happier than ever.”
Sikhounmuong sees the appeal of the jumpsuit as relating back to Alex Mill’s vission—”of waking up, getting dressed, and not having to overthink it. There’s nothing easier than a jumpsuit. You literally just jump into it.” He says he’ll always try work one in to his collections, “whether it be an old one that we’ve done that people love in a new color or a totally new one,” since he believes it’s important to “be consistent.”
Nikki Ogunnaike, GQ’s deputy fashion director, has written about her love of Alex Mill jumpsuits.
Christian VierigAlex Mill’s tagline is “uniforms for individuals,” and the jumpsuit epitomizes it, according to Sikhounmuong. “It’s this idea of it being so versatile that people can put their own spin [on] it. I’ve seen it worn with the top down and tied around the waist, as a pant; I’ve seen it with a blazer over it; I’ve seen it belted, unbelted; I’ve seen it with a turtleneck underneath… It’s just been really cool to see all the options. I think people really appreciate that.”
Join the Alex Mill jumpsuit fan club by shopping some of the brand’s coveralls, below.
