Ace Harper Brings Punk Glamour to Fashion Week El Paseo | Palm Springs Life

The line, available online and at luxury retailers including The Webster in Palm Springs, channels Harper’s dual inspirations: the discipline of ballet and the abandon of rock ’n’ roll. Her latest collection, “Move With Abandon,” celebrates movement with expressive prints, bold shoulders, and oversized tailoring inspired by icons like David Bowie, Debbie Harry, and Karole Armitage. “Our silk blouse is the hero piece,” Harper says. “You can wear it to work and out with your girlfriends at night.”

Prints like “Vivienne,” inspired by Vivienne Westwood, and “Bauhaus,” a kaleidoscopic swirling of geometric shapes, add a playful irreverence to the line, while meticulous tailoring reflects Harper’s precision as a dancer. It’s the “discipline and sweat” that it takes to make it as a dancer combined with the “freedom and creativity of the art form” that give the clothes their movement and whimsy.

Susan Stein, director of Fashion Week El Paseo, praises Harper for creating a line that blends high-fashion glamour with wearability. Her clothes are “feminine, elegant, and sophisticated in a hip way,” Stein says. On the heels of presentations during New York and Paris fashion weeks, Harper will show her collection March 15 at Fashion Week El Paseo in Palm Desert.

While the design business is based in Los Angeles, Harper considers Palm Springs home and values embedding her brand in the local community. A highlight for her was hosting a launch event at The Webster, where she watched clients emerge from dressing rooms glowing with confidence. To see real women wearing and loving her clothes was even more thrilling than stepping on the stage herself, she shares. “When they put on these clothes, I  just hope that it helps bring out their confidence and reminds them of  their intrinsic worth.”

Learn more about Fashion Week El Paseo and get tickets at fashionweekelpaseo.com.