Stepping off the elevator on the 48th floor of the Solow Building, a modernist skyscraper in midtown Manhattan that hosted Toteme’s summer 2025 show yesterday morning, guests audibly gasped. The whole city lay before us like a postcard picture, split by the green expanse of Central Park. For cofounders Elin Kling and Karl Lindman, the show—their second ever, and their first in New York following a runway debut during couture in Paris last season—was a homecoming of sorts.
The Swedish couple met here in the early 2010s when Kling was an inimitably chic fashion blogger who dressed exclusively in monochrome outfits and Lindman, the design director of Interview magazine. They launched their quiet-luxury label together in 2014—she focuses on design, and he on branding—before moving back to Stockholm to raise their two children. “My main inspiration is always New York,” said Kling backstage. “That’s where I find my woman. I think she has an independence and a stride and she’s always on the go.”
The Toteme woman favors the New Yorker’s favorite color—black—and varying shades of white and off-white, from cream and bone to eggshell and ivory. All of the looks save one washed-out citrine cape dress were monochrome. “It’s 50 shades of white,” joked Lindman. Elevated basics, like perfect cashmere t-shirts and oversize double-breasted blazers (which the label does so brilliantly), don’t always have the wow factor on a runway. But the special ingredient here was the styling. Kling and stylist Camilla Nickerson paired different shades of white together, such as an off-white elbow-sleeve top and a bright white gauzy maxi skirt. They played with mixing black suedes with more matte-black fabrics to achieve a grayscale effect.
Accessories were a major focus this season. Toteme’s slouchy T-lock shoulder bag, with its architectural gold closure and buckled shoulder strap, has quickly become a fashion insider favorite since it was introduced two years ago; summer 2025 brings a must-have update that combines the curve of the T-lock with a buckled strap that loops elegantly around the wrist. There was also a great selection of clean-line jewelry from gold- and silver-plated chain-link necklaces to onyx and marble pendants, as well as walkable mules, sandals, and slides with minimalist straps and subtle curved heels that we’ll surely see soon on the streets of New York.
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