SS26 was the now infamous ‘reset’ season of mega designers taking up residence at new houses. The result is a broom-sweep of schloopy silhouettes in lieu of sharper cuts, bold injections of colour and a menu of fashion archetypes to choose from, rather than one or two overarching directions.
1/ PALETTE CLEANSER. One thing designers did agree on: this is a season for pure primaries in abundance. It’s a look that works really well on simple, architectural silhouettes which was especially clear at Jil Sander (below), Loewe and Celine as well as The Row (top). Just one piece can energise your everyday since primaries play so well against grey, beige and denim. The Loewe ‘Sports Walkman’ yellows (below) are pure summer holiday vibes and I love a red cardigan to offset khaki, white or grey. Vogue Italia market editor Marta Oldrini shows the way with her cardigan slotted through her belt (below). And if you haven’t tried Celine’s luscious Rouge Triomphe lipstick yet, this might be the season to do it.
2/ QUEER CODING IN MENSWEAR RECLAIMED. Super 8 film clips by Larry Stanton titled ‘Fire Island August 1975’ featuring sunbathing male bodies teased the Saint Laurent SS26 menswear show. Pyjama tops* messily tucked into boxer shorts and paper bag trousers (below) were an apparent nod to the subtle gestures of exposure of Fire Island’s 1970s queer codes while less subtly, Versace’s crotchy jeans and exposed flies by one-season-only designer Dario Vitale had TikTok critics clutching their Medusa pendants in horror. (The subsequent ad – below – put the undone flies front and centre.)
Elsewhere, Jonathan Anderson was a tad more overt. As the costumer for Luca Guadagnino’s 2024 film, Queerhe created (and wore himself) an exclusive Queer sweatshirt seeded to VIPs and movie insiders while for his JWAnderson customers he collaborated with artist Dean Sameshima on explicit ‘Anonymous Faggot’ and Anonymous Trade sweatshirts. Not to be outdone on the overt exploration-slash-celebration of queer masculinity, collage artist Pacific Silan teamed up with Acne Studios on its SS26 show set design and a T-shirt collab* (below) featuring his signature slivers of softcore collage imagery writ large. On a sidenote, two new book on my radar: Arthur Tress’s photo book The Ramble, NYC 1969 (below) takes us into the discreet world of Central Park cruising at a time when being gay in America was against the law. And Andrew Durbin’s The Wonderful World that Almost Was (great title, taken from an exhibition) follows the friendship-to-romance relationship of artist Paul Thek and photographer Peter Hujar from the 1950s to the 1970s (below). Pre-order here. Something all these examples have in common? A push back against the culture against inclusivity. I think it’s important to acknowledge it.
3/ VERSACE IS INTERESTING AGAIN. If a collection is polarising you can (usually) expect it to do well. While Versace SS26 (below) has only just dropped in stores, that’s almost a feat in itself. Online discourse following the announcement of Vitale’s departure from Versace seemed convinced it wouldn’t see the light of day, so far did it veer from Donatella-era Versace. My take is since Dario Vitale was ousted from the brand just a few months after showing his collection, this in itself could deem its place in history and thus its collectibility. Having seen it in store, the skimpy jersey singlets*, coloured denim*, striped poles*, slim baroque-print blouses and tanned leather bags* are the pieces likely to appeal to a younger, cooler customer. Not to mention the deco-style pendant necklace that opens to reveal a mirrored cigarette case-come-money-clip – swoon! The store staff are encouraging customers to shop across the men’s and women’s floors, to mix and match as they see fit.
4/ CHARVET-CHIC. One of the highlights of Matthieu Blazy’s Chanel debut: those Charvet shirts of course (below). Some were long and boxy, others cropped with sweet, discreet monograms and weighted down with signature Chanel chains. (They’ve been causing a frenzy in the Chanel Paris stores already, even at €3,900 a pop.)
The hysteria meant a fashion fillip for storied shirtmaker Charvet too. With the outrage online about Chanel prices, you can go straight to Charvet for a bespoke shirt starting at around £380 (plus the air fare to Paris). Or in the UK, Turnbull & Asser makes bespoke shirts starting at £395 but you need to buy a minimum of four (according to A.I). Here’s a look at the process from the vaults. The high street has capitalised on the Charvet-for-Chanel buzz with similarly styled cropped shirting* (below) and Charvet-alike silk spot scarves* (below). Hello & Other Stories and COS!
5/ & OTHER STORIES REDUX . On which note, & Other Stories* (below) has had a quiet revamp with much more fashion-forward silhouettes, photography, styling, casting and even poses. Its online presence was always a bit ‘off ‘for me in that regard (stores are much better) but this season sees an influx of Versace Jeans Couture-coded red denim, Celine-esque silk scarves, affordable trench coats and Katie Hillier-designed bags.
6/ ST GEORGE TEE. My T-shirt of the season is the St George Joshua Tree top (below), a soft cotton cap-sleeved made-in-Italy tee that’s a perfect ‘white slice’ under spring knits and sweatshirts. I’d prefer a dupe though as St George is part of the problematic Brandy Melville stable…
7/ PREPPY RE-REVIVAL. “In Tokyo right now, every vintage store has racks and racks of XXL ‘90s Ralph Lauren in rainbow colours. They wear huge Polo Ralph Lauren vintage shirts over a T-shirt with big silhouette pants.” W. David Marx (author of Ametora: How Japan Saved American Style) gave me the global lowdown on what’s preppy now for a recent Harrods magazine article. With everyone from Celine (below) to Dior (below) offering their take on preppy staples, my strategy is to mix proportions and to offset old patina-ed favourites with pristine newness. The oversized cherry red Polo Harrington* (below) has been on my wish list forever, which I’d like to pair with a fitted cable knit, mashed up boat tote and baggy chinos. I’m crossing fingers for a massive (and weighty) women’s chino to materialise from somewhere. Ralph Lauren showed a fab remake of the Annie Hall one at Vogue World last October – let’s hope it’s gone into production.
8/ FASHION ARCHETYPES. Not into prep? No worries, there’s a whole panoply of archetypes to tap into. worthy called it at Gucci. We’re not one person all the time, we’re multi-faceted, and SS26 gives us the means to cosplay with identities and character tropes. Wall Street final boss, Gucci “Gallerista”, Milanese fashion intellectual (Marta Oldrini again, below) you get the picture.
9/ JUDE FOOTWEAR. Fabulous footwear on my radar, Jude is well-priced, made in Portugal and features slightly fetishy silhouettes, elite hotel slippers and – my pick – an immaculate polished calfskin riding boot (below).
IN OTHER NEWS…
Alekos Fassianos is trending with a new show, The Dreamers at Herald Street GalleryWC1 from 1 April-23 May. I also love this ashtray (below) from the Alekos Fassianos x Aime Leon Dore collab. WTF is Polymarket and why are people freaking out about its Substack partnership and ‘inside trading’ fears? Sarah Creal Beauty is coming to Sephora UK. Anyone for Tai Chi walking? Jack Davison’s Portraits 14-16 November of intimate gravure ‘mugshots’ at Cob Gallery in WC1 is superb (until 2 April). Everybody’s Londonmaxxing lol.
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WORDS: Disneyrollergirl / Navaz Batliwalla
IMAGES: TO COME
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