For the past couple of seasons, there’s been a lot of talk in the fashion press about the return of ladylike glamour. So far, this has seemed more like a theory than an actual trend. But now we should start to take our inner Joan Crawford seriously. The opening shows of fashion week exhibited a kind of genteel yet rustic elegance reminiscent of a 1930s girls’ boarding school. West Coast transplant Jenni Kayne delighted her socialite-studded audience (Hearsts and Dexter-Joneses) with a nostalgic and softly feminine collection. Ms. Kayne favors simple silhouettes with ambitious design details. Slim slip dresses sported loose gatherings on the hips, and straight cocktail frocks had silvery lace insets in the back and on the sides. Jackets were emphasized in almost every look, from tailored blazers worn with cropped, pleated trousers to a shrunken tuxedo jacket over a narrow lace gown. In spite of their almost formal elegance, the clothes had a girlish sensibility about them that should appeal to the models and celebutantes in the front row.

Sari Gueron was one of the first designers to start exploring the pre-war debutante look, but this season she rewound a couple of decades to the Weiner Werkstatte movement. Ms. Gueron is most famous for her sophisticated dresses, which exude understated luxury and intelligence. This season she unleashed a slightly tougher side by sending out skinny black pants that she paired with wispy chiffon shirts, chunky cashmere knits, and strong wool opera coats. She created artful insets of delicate pleats and lace in slim chiffon dresses that looked like modern takes on Madeleine Vionnet’s classic lingerie gowns. She also sent out fluid velvet tunics in jewel-toned upholstery-looking patterns that were much more attractive than they sound. The collection’s showstopper was a red chiffon gown with unfinished pleats and a dramatic black velvet belt that should show up at plenty of charity balls in the fall.

Jasmin Shokrian made a name for herself last year by wowing critics with a sculptural and slightly futuristic collection.This year, she, too, seemed to be revisiting an old-fashioned sense of femininity. There wasn’t a pair of pants in sight, but plenty of skirts in deconstructed tulip shapes and draped knit capes. Ms. Shokrian twists and drapes her fabrics in organic shapes that sometimes end up on the overwrought and bulky side, but when her silhouettes were clean and fluid, her clothes were appealing and wearable.

The subtly conceptual Mary Ping has quietly become a New York force to reckon with. Her show was rigorously modern, which felt like a refreshing palate cleanser after all the sweet and swirly looks. Ms. Ping has a wonderful sense of fabric, and this season she worked with contrasts and insets. Slices of black patent leather recurred throughout the collection: on the waists of skinny satin and velvet jeans, on the trim of a wide tweed parka, and in the patchy details on a cream jersey dress.The absence of fabric created a similar visual effect in an updated black velvet cheongsam with graphic cutouts in the back. There were softer looks, too, such as a luscious A-line turtleneck cashmere knit dress. It’s always encouraging to see a young designer have vision and integrity, and this fall tomboys will be most grateful to Ms. Ping for not caving in to the nostalgic dress craze of the moment.