Coach is 85 this year, and Stuart Vevers celebrated in a slightly wistful way. His mood boards had Meg Ryan in a long, oversized khaki wool coat from the 2000 film Hanging Up, layers of faded, peeling floral wallpaper, balloons gathered in the corner of a ceiling, and candles. "There's a lot of memory," he said.

"And I think once you decide you're doing a party, an anniversary, you start to become sentimental." His own memories included his wedding at City Hall, the suit he wore, and confetti on the pavement. I love that he made the brand's birthday about his own life rather than a museum of old bags.

The silhouette is the one he has built over recent seasons: long and lean, a slightly slouchy pant and a cropped top. The show opened with rumpled suits in gray, khaki or sun-faded floral, sometimes worn shirtless or with a short sleeveless shirt in leather or open-weave crochet.

About three in ten looks tie a layer at the waist, usually the suit jacket itself, which is a styling trick anyone can steal tomorrow. A floaty trench made to look inside out, with the lining showing, was thrown over the top, almost to the ground. Bias-cut dresses with knit sleeves and skirts over sheer pants filled out the middle.

Later the mood lifted. Sequined blazers and dresses came with a crushed bow at the back, and a few looks shimmered with sequins or foil. Models wore party hats or crowns askew, and almost a third of the looks carried some kind of party prop. The bags were covered in confetti.

Vevers turned the Brooklyn tote inside out, with its pocket exposed, and added extra pockets, including a coin purse, to the Tabby shoulder bag. More than three quarters of the looks carry a bag, and nearly every look wears a long pendant necklace, which is the detail that ties the whole show together.

I like this collection because it feels grounded. A drooping suit, a trim top that shows a bit of midriff, a tossed-on trench and sneakers is a uniform plenty of young people would actually wear, especially those tired of chasing every new trend. The styling repeats, but you leave knowing exactly what Vevers believes this season.

Then the curtains at the end of the runway opened on a live youth orchestra from the Bronx, voguing dancers came down the catwalk, confetti fell on the crowd, and the song was "Love Is the Message." If I were copying one idea, it would be a long pendant over a slouchy suit.