The iconic fashion house was founded in 1977 on the shores of Capri, Italy, by the couple Anna Molinari and Gianpaolo Tarabini. The house has been known for its romantic feminine image, with Anna Molinari being crowned as the Queen of Roses back in her day.
Despite being founded more than 20 years before the 21st century, Blumarine has made a strong comeback to the fashion scene as the forerunner of Y2K fashion, thanks to their newly appointed creative director Nicola Brognano. The brand has had several emblems to embody its identity: first the rose, then the butterfly. One of their trademark pieces is their butterfly top which is a nod to Mariah Carey’s outfit for the VH1 Divas Live concert in 2000.
Blumarine goes to its Caprese roots with its SS2023 collection. Nicola Brognano has introduced Blumarine’s newest muse: the mermaid. With Underwater as the theme of the show, models wore siren-like tresses and bejeweled skin as they walked down the ocean-floor runway.
The collection embodied a gothic femme, a softened iteration of the 2000s grunge with its color palette of muted, somber neutrals. Their use of stone-wash denim, gothic-font accessories, crosses, and burnished metallics was a highlight of the show and is something we can expect to trend in 2023. Also recurring were the hybrid and utilitarian structures; skirts and dresses morphing into bell bottoms that were a nod to amphibious marine creatures.
The pieces maintain their flowy character which can be seen in previous collections. Instead of sexy and sensual, this season interprets it in a mysterious and alluring way – like a siren calling out to pirates on board. The pieces paid homage to its muse with mermaid-tailed silhouettes and fringes that flowed like algae. Despite undertaking a darker theme than usual, Brognano maintains Blumarine’s signature it-girl pink but with reinvented details.
While Mariah Carey seems to be an inspiration for Blumarine’s SS2022, it appears that Brogano’s latest collection took notes from Britney Spears’ iconic runway look from the 2000s.
As Blumarine morphs from feminine to femme, we wait eagerly to see which pieces will be 2023’s it items.
