The Vampires Wife X H&M Is The Most Romantic Collaboration Of 2020 – British Vogue

It seems to me like an act of magic, The Vampires Wife designer Susie Cave tells British Vogue of seeing her whimsical, romantic dresses hit the mainstream with a little help from H&M. When the high-street giant wagered Caves interest in a collaboration, the designer leapt at the opportunity. Such grand names have gone before me! she enthuses ahead of the 22 October launch date. Karl Lagerfeld and Versace... but really it was the idea that my dresses could be available to everyone that was so very exciting.

The designer has nothing but praise for her new Swedish colleagues, with whom she worked closely via Zoom. H&M took great pains to find the very essence of what The Vampires Wife is about, and then realised my dreams to my exact specifications, asserts Cave. To design a dress at The Vampires Wife and get it through to the finish line is extremely difficult, miraculous really, as we are a small company. H&M is extraordinarily powerful in that respect. Not only did the retailer turn around Caves vision quickly during the pandemic, it made sure the clothing was created as sustainably as possible, too.

H&M took on board Caves inspirations chiefly the shadowy history of the medieval town of Lewes, now home to her brands HQ and together, they decided upon a gothic mood for the collection. The fact the line of predominantly black prairie-meets-Victorian dresses launches around Halloween is not lost on Cave, although she admits she would wear these bewitching pieces all year round.

Highlights include the street-sweeper dress with retro-ruffled hem, and a silver-flecked lace mini-dress with matching capelet, which sing of the colours of the Ballets Russes, which Cave loves because of the way the dancers costumes catch the light. The dark velvet pussy-bow dress, meanwhile, has a dash of original Biba about it. Indeed, Cave is particularly smitten with the styling on campaign stars Greta Bellamacina, Eva Apio and Samantha Snow, because it segues between moodiness and the ethereal look synonymous with the 60s.

Caves favourite piece is the cape with sumptuous velvet bow which, she promises, lends an unexpected degree of polish to Zoom calls. We havent done a flared silhouette before; I love that you can just throw the cape on with anything and its a look. She also teases that the detachable oversized collars might make an appearance in her new youthful subdivision of The Vampires Wife, called Vampire Girl. A line of playful dresses in keeping with the free-spirited mood of Caves H&M collection will launch in November.

As always her husband Nick, of Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds, joined in the creative process. Our house has become like Warhols factory except there are no visitors, of course. We are a couple of hermits, she says, before revealing that the H&M jewellery is all down to the musician. Nick sat down one morning and designed it all himself. He loves to work on things he knows nothing about. He sees it as an advantage and is not restrained by limitations. The charm bracelets, ear cuffs and necklaces, which feature fangs, eye and cloud iconography, are nods to the little visual treasures that mean so much to the couple.

Its exciting to have the power of such a brand behind me, muses Cave. Indeed, its just as thrilling to see the indie label, brainchild of one the sweetest women in fashion, about to go stratospheric.

Shop The Vampires Wife x H&M collection in select stores and on Hm.com from 22 October.

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The Vampires Wife X H&M Is The Most Romantic Collaboration Of 2020 - British Vogue