10 Designers on the Rise

Apiece Apart

Modeled by jeweler Monique Péan

In the beginning: On a 2008 road trip through Texas, friends Starr Hout (a stylist) and Laura Cramer (an art director) dreamed up the "modular uniform": a streamlined wardrobe of beautiful essentials that could be mixed, matched, and layered. Known for: Better basics—simple shapes and good fabrics at below-designer prices. Tidbit: Hout and Cramer were born a day apart in 1978. The next... Halston. Famous fans: Rachel Weisz, Victoria Beckham, Annette Bening.

Silk shell, $216; skirt, $373.

Read our interview with jeweler Monique Péan