As we’re starting to shed our layers, the spring months never fail to usher in a sense of femininity to fashion, with attention shifting to floaty shapes and lighter fabrics. Stella McCartney speaks to this in her latest spring collection.
This ethereal concept was carried to greater heights in the Stella McCartney Spring/Summer 2022 collection, with mushrooms serving as the main muse in both print and material (more on that later). The collection draws its influences from nature’s vibrancy by merging energetic, bright colours with earthiness. Nearly-neon hues, textural fabrics, fringing and pleats amongst daring cut-outs are all on the menu.
Stella has once again produced a visual story that is difficult not to be completely infatuated with by blending slim-fit separates with structural pieces clearly influenced by Japanese martial art uniforms. In this roster, there’s truly something for everyone.
The Mylo Frayme bag, which will be available later this season, is particularly noteworthy. A material innovation by Bolt Threads crafted from mycelium (mushroom leather), Mylois is the industry’s amazing new sustainable answer to PVC, an unsustainable plastic that is no longer a viable leather alternative.
Mylo is a proven animal-free leather substitute that is also completely renewable due to its origins in fungi’s underground root structure. According to Stella, whose SS22 show was the first-ever runway presentation for a purse made of Mylo, this is sustainability at its smartest.
“Mylo mycelium leather is a landmark moment not only for us, but the world,” Stella noted. “What you see on the runway today is the conscious fashion industry of tomorrow.”
The Mylo Frayme is a continuation of Stella’s cruelty-free approach to fashion, having already pioneered the first vegan luxury ‘it bag’ with the renowned Falabella tote in 2009, which has sold over 1 million units and saved the lives of over 400,000 cows.
For a sincerely chic summer wardrobe, find items with soft, deconstructed corsets, hand-drawn mushroom patterns, parachute-like accents, and piped necklines inspired by astronaut cooling tubes.