Abigail Lorick takes a break from partying to talk about designing all those hot Eleanor Waldorf outfits.

Bronques: Are you the next big thing?
Abigail: Some people are saying that.

What do you design?
I design a women's contemporary ready to wear line.

What's cool about it?
Because we're a fresh collection and we're going forward with the concept of bringing elegance back to our generation of women, which is something that is strongly lacking. There's a void and we're filling that void.

"Bringing back elegance" just seems like something that any designer can say. Give me something better...
Absolutely. Our collection is about bringing back the idea that when women wake up in the morning they can really play and have fun with their wardrobes.

Well then, isn't American Apparel bringing back elegance?
American Apparel makes basic pieces in the rainbow colors, and we all need basics, but the Lorick collection gives women other pieces that she can take and incorporate into her whole wardrobe. We have scarves, we have gloves, we have pencil skirts, we have capes... It's all about these accessories and these basics that you can weave into your wardrobe. It's not just a t-shirt and a scarf and a pair of pants all in a solid color. These are pieces that you can pull from your closet and that little extra make you feel more fabulous and feminine going out.

Do you consider you're making clothes to finish off an outfit?
Lorick pieces are staples and they MAKE the outfit. A woman can wear all black, but if she has a fabulous pair of shoes on, or a scarf, that can MAKE the whole outfit. Without that last item there really wouldn't be an outfit... It would just be kind of boring.

What's the trend that you're bucking right now?
Not giving a shit. It's been considered "cool" for a while now to not give a shit about what you're putting on. That was good for a while like when I was in high school, but now that I'm embracing being a woman I want to expand my palette. I love a dirty t-shirt, but I like mixing it with a classic pencil skirt. It's about having a few elements in your outfit that show the respect that you have for yourself.

Who inpires this whole movement for you?
My girlfriends. Taylor, Ginna, Meridith, Audrey... We all embrace that idea of fashion. I used to be a surfer and wear whatever, but becoming a woman I'm looking for more. So many girls in the Lower East Side - and this is my neighborhood - but, so many of them don't really DRESS...

Yeah... and the problem is I think they THINK they do... but many girl's perception of dressing up is embracing some sort of porn aesthetic.
Yeah so many girls are like, "I'm so crazy, and I don't care" and end up projecting that "porn aesthetic". It breaks my heart.

Do you think you can bring back the elegance?
I think that girls want it to come back.

Elegance is such a pretty word. Give me a few more words to sink my teeth into.
Uh, timelessness, refinement, femininity, it's modern...

Wow, I think those are the words that Harriet Powell of New York Magazine used to describe Chanel.
Classicness, as opposed to conservativeness...

Is the mainstream responding to this new wave?
Well Warner Brother's just signed us to become the designer behind Eleanor Waldorf on Gossip Girl. Every piece that's on TV that's hers is actually a Lorick piece.

All of those are your pieces? I love that show!
Thank you! We've been getting a great response. In the showroom we're next to Surface To Air, The Cast, Fremont, which are amazing downtown lines.

Audrey gave me a pair of Freemont pants that I practically sleep in.
Yeah. The Cast t-shirts are great too! They should be staples in a girl's closet.

You're not designing for men?
No...

It would be great to bring back elegance for men!
I think it's coming.