Marriage was on Meryll Rogge’s mind this season — namely, her own.
The Belgian designer wed in May, and created her own dress for the nuptials. As a result, romanticism infused the collection and moved it in a more feminine direction for spring.
There was a white satin column dress with a hand-stitched collar and unfinished seams, as well as a voluminous triple-tiered eyelet skirt and a coordinating cape.
But to sidestep such a literal interpretation of a bridal collection, Rogge took a more eclectic approach, as if working on tiny tableaus for each look. “Each one of these outfits spurred a whole little world,” she told WWD. “It was very nice to be free and not stuck to a mood board.”
Cue boxer short bloomers and a bow-front blouse in black-and-white check, alongside grommeted chiffon gowns.
The wedding’s location of Cadaqués, Spain, added another layer of inspiration. She looked to the siempre viva wildflowers, meaning “everlasting” in English, the delicate yellow blooms that grow in the desert there to create a motif as cutouts on minidresses and a beaded design on a swingy silver skirt.
Rogge’s family has had a house in the Spanish village since 1959, and she also pulled in references from that era, such as the patchwork of a vintage Yves Saint Laurent dress translated into a denim skirt and jacket set.
Her Japanese cotton chinos and deconstructed button-down shirts were given updates this season, the latter in a pinstripe, which remain some of her most boyish — and bestselling — items.
A Champagne reception in the gilded halls of the Belgian embassy in Paris was also a notable shift from last season’s collection, which was held in the underground tunnels of a school, and a prior season in a bowling alley. The collection felt more mature and quietly confident, while the unfinished touches and the artisanal aesthetic of the knitwear kept Rogge’s grungy edge to good effect.
