Erdem Moralioglu has found himself in a nostalgic mood as he prepares to mark the 20th anniversary of his brand in 2026, no mean feat for a homegrown London designer.
For inspiration, he’s been looking to his own past, and to France during the Belle Époque, the brief but charmed decades before World War I that were a time of prosperity, artistic freedom and social change.
His muse was Maud Wagner, America’s first female tattoo artist, who lived and worked during the Belle Époque years, treating the body as a living canvas and becoming a success in what was then a male-dominated craft.
You May Also Like
Not surprisingly, the collection was lavish. It brimmed with rich fabrics, curling and twisting embroideries.
“Pre-fall is such an important collection, and this was a joy to make,” Moralioglu said. Evening coats were hand-embroidered with crystals, while 3D flowers blossomed across gowns, cardigans and skirts. Blouses and white dresses had high, ruffled necks recalling those of the era’s dandies and poets.
Moralioglu nodded to his own past, scattering motifs from previous collections across the romantic clothing. They included blue swans floating across a long, white crinkled dress with a high collar, and crystal carnations tumbling down the front of a teal evening coat. White butterflies, looking as if they’d been stenciled with white chalk, flitted across a denim coat with rounded sleeves.
He tempered that romance with sleek lines, pairing those ruffled shirts and lacy trousers with lean, nipped tweed jackets or mannish double cashmere coats.
Moralioglu hasn’t finished looking back on the past 20 years. He has big plans for 2026, including the launch of his new Rizzoli book in the U.S., and an exhibition of remade styles from past collections that will go on display at Dover Street Market ahead of London Fashion Week in February.
