We are barely out of summer — though the Paris weather would disagree — and looking to the next one. For spring, Ganni creative director Ditte Reffstrup was looking back at her childhood in a fishing village in Denmark, and nostalgia never looked so forward.
The presentation began with sculptural mannequins layered in emotive textures of sheer knits, painted denim, hand-crochet and wrapped silks. The showpiece styling kept the textiles and techniques such as crochet and vintage florals from feeling stuffy, instead infused with a curious energy and patchwork approach — “What can we play with?” seemed to be her question.
Scarves were knotted into bandeaus or obi-style belts, shirts wrapped up and around, and strapless dresses popped over T-shirts. Fabrics shifted through tactile layers from the airy hand-crochet (made in house in Copenhagen), to filmy organza and smocked cottons, while prints and color combos such as red and fuchsia, turquoise and brown clashed in the best of ways.
Reffstrup’s favorite flower, the peony, was rendered soft and blurred against the bright yellow of the summer sun. She reminisced about the visions of a child on a summer trip to the beach, watching the world go by from the back seat. The prints appeared like dreamy flashes on the fabrics.
She also applied the same blur technique to the house’s signature leopard print, still a huge part of the Ganni girl’s wardrobe, for a softer effect this season.
More commercial versions of the pieces that will be produced, such as coat-jacket hybrids with pieces that can be paired or removed, easy shirting and off-the-shoulder trenchcoats, were interspersed with the more delicate, one-of-a-kind garments.
The house’s signature double-belt motif appeared throughout, anchoring floatier silhouettes with a bit of hardware.
Accessories continued to be a success story for the brand, with the Bou bag now available in a crocheted version. This season they added a large tote with exterior pockets that could be for the commute, or to carry one’s garden tools. She also introduced a new take on the traditional Danish clog, in open toe and floral versions.
Reffstrup decided on a presentation this season in an effort to slow down and get off the hamster wheel of fashion shows.
“I really need to slow down,” she said of the break-neck pace of building a global brand. Recalling village life inspired the collection. “Everything was quiet there, and that’s really where my creativity was born,” she said. “You know those ‘boring’ summer days, but that kind of grew into something beautiful.”