SEIZING tradition within a new age of progression and challenging the status-quo can prove difficult. However, Emilia Wickstead carries it off effortlessly. Seamlessly blending a fashion fairytale with modern inclusivity, Wickstead uses this collection to celebrate different female bodies and the power clothing can bring to them.
Inspired by the Faery Lands of the South Seas, a non-fiction book by writers James Norman Hall and Charles Bernard Nordhoff which details and documents their travels across New Zealand and Samoa (Wickstead’s own roots), the designer draws on its imagery to create the collection. Nods to this include colonial-era flared a-line silhouettes and subdued tailoring, constructed around a subtle, but romantic, colour palette.
Beyond that, Wickstead brings a contemporary edge to the collection, especially through the particularly striking balcony bra and sculpted skirt combo. An experiment with traditional silhouettes, the collection shows a daring desire to experiment with what is conventional, while taking from fashion’s most beautiful moments of history.
by Emma Hart
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