layer it on me; VPL, formerly an underwear-only line, is bringing fashion to tiers.

Byline: Florence Kane

In a very understated way, Victoria Bartlett has always been ahead of her time. She's not one to talk about it, though. Back in her studio in December, when she shows me her spring collection, the former stylist never once mentions any trend she might have presaged or accused any designer of idea theft. But as she takes each piece off the rack to talk about its construction or inspiration, it's evident that so many key elements of recent seasons are and have been there from VPL's beginnings. Bartlett's navy jodhpurs and jacket? The New Suit. The dress with the sweatshirt pocket? Sporty Chic. And the splatter-painted bodysuit on the mannequin? Dressed-up Swim. "I always love the bodysuits," Bartlett says of the shape she's done over time. "They never sell, but we do them purely for the VPL foundation." Why would the label need a "foundation"? Because, regardless of whether each of its components sells or not, VPL is a calculated system of dressing. When Bartlett started VPL in 2003, it was a line of fifties-inspired, industrial-looking underwear. Over the years she's added sportswear so that the way the collection evolved on the runway_-gaining a jersey skirt one season, a jacket the next_-matches the way you wear it. "It's almost like building blocks," says Bartlett, putting together a spring outfit to explain her process. "I would do one of the Tidal bras," she says, pointing to a thick-strapped, banded brassiere of jersey, "and then have a tank. I would even have two of the same tanks but of different colors. It gives you a different perspective when you overlay them." Then she adds a satiny jacket and a liquidy skirt (the spring collection is based on waterfalls and the way water ripples and moves). And through all these layers, the undergarment should still somehow show. But revealing bits of your intimates the Bartlett way isn't meant to be overtly sexy, as, say, a look from ...