Simone Rocha: The Power of an Audience

Last week, I had the pleasure of attending the first instalment of ‘Vogue Conversations’ with Simone Rocha and Julia Hobbs. Simone Rocha is a London-based fashion designer renowned for her innovative, romantic, and often subversive designs that aspire to rewrite codes of femininity by using garments historically repressive for women and turning them into a tool of empowerment.

One of the most striking parts of the talk was her discussion around the magic of the beginning of a runway show and the influence that an audience brings to the show. The sound of audience coming in and the models’ feet on the floor signifies a change of pace in the room. Simone Rocha wants to see the way they dress, how they feel, and even wants them to clap at the end.

In an age of celebrities and influencers tending to exclusively have access to runway shows ,it’s nice to hear of a simpler approach that brings catwalks back into their renaissance.

Elle Collective x Max Mara

Last month, I had the pleasure of attending an ELLE COLLECTIVE event with Max Mara at their flagship store on Bond Street. Throughout the evening, we celebrated the role of fashion as a symbol of power, with a focus on the brand's iconic coats and tailoring. Guests gathered to discuss the intersection of women, fashion, and soft power, led by Elle's editor-in-chief Kenya Hunt and fashion features director Tamsin O'Connor.

Elle's Editor in Chief, Kenya Hunt and Fashion Feature's Director, Tamsin O'Connor

The conversation highlighted how fashion has historically been used to signify power, from Empress Eugénie to the Suffragettes and the Black Power movement, emphasizing how visual cues like clothing and accessories carry a deeper meaning. Hunt and O'Connor discussed the importance of fashion in today’s world, where visual imagery—especially on platforms like Instagram—dominates how people present themselves. Fashion, they noted, is a powerful tool for expressing identity and agency, particularly in a world where much of our lives are tailored to our individual tastes via algorithms. The return to tailoring, with sharp suits and sleek wool coats, was seen as reflective of a broader shift back to professional environments, symbolizing empowerment and a desire to impress.

The event also explored the balance between creative and commercial aspects of fashion, with emphasis on fostering connections outside digital spaces and understanding the value of physical interactions. This balance is essential for creativity to thrive while still addressing commercial needs, particularly in a time where fashion serves as a platform for broader societal change. The night ended with some mingling before taking home a token Max Mara bag, very excited for the next event.

The underrated looks of Ariana Grande

2024 has been Ariana Grande’s year of impeccable style and yet barely anyone is giving it the attention it deserves. With everything from Audrey Hepburn inspired attire, an entire style evolution to celebrate her album, Eternal Sunshine, and coordinated method dressing for the WICKED press tour with co- star, Cynthia Erivo, Grande has been making waves in the world of fashion and deserves to be recognised and celebrated for it.

Ariana Grande wearing David Koma for SNL

Since the end of 2023, it has been apparent that Grande has been undertaking somewhat of a style evolution into a more balletcorre, overtly feminine, vintage inspired, flower power aesthetic that strays from current fashion trends. Naturally, this gives her outfits a refreshing feel about them, but also compliments her and what she is trying to promote. Her secret weapon to all of this is stylist Mimi Cuttrell, if you want Ariana Grande style inspo, you need look no further than her Instagram page.

Ariana Grande wears Maison Margeila for her Eternal Sunshine album cover

Her looks in the press tour for her album, Eternal Sunshine are the first clear indicator that we have of her style transition thanks to the distinctive silhouettes and colours incorporated into her outfits. Creating a very recognisable vintage inspired balletcorre aesthetic.

Ariana Grande in Sandy Liang for the We Can’t be Friends music video

While similar in some aspects to her promotional looks for Eternal Sunshine, her press tour outfits for WICKEDdefinitely take on more of a princessy, fariycore shift to align with the character of Glinda. The first indicator we had of this was her look at the 2024 Oscars in March.

Cynthia Erivo in Louis Vuitton and Ariana Grande in Giambattista Valli haute couture at the Oscars.

Erivo’s and Grande’s WICKED inspired looks started long before the official promotional tour for WICKED began and were ingenious in building into the hype. It also shows incredible commitment to the characters. Their outfits for their Met Gala performance were particularly interesting as they almost seemed to switch costume characteristics. Ariana performed as Glinda in a green Maison Margiela look from his viral Artisanal collection whilst Cynthis performed as Elphaba in a full-length Thom Browne princess dress.

Ariana Grande in Maison Margiela and Cynthia Erivo in Thom Browne A/W 2013 at the Met Gala

The pre- press tour even made a promotional stop at the Paris Olympics where not only decked head to toe in their character’s signature colours, they also incorporated the Parisienne look into their costumes. Almost as if Elphaba and Glinda were visiting Paris.

Erivo in custom Louis Vuitton, and Grande in custom Thom Browne at the Paris Olympics

What is very clear about all the promotional looks on the WICKED Press tour is that it is an incredible example of method dressing. Hollywood has been known to love method dressing but this WICKED promotional tour is definitely one of the more extreme but also immaculate examples we’ve seen in a while.

Ariana Grande in custom Vivienne Westwood and Cynthia Erivo in custom Louis Vuitton at the Journey Through Oz tour, to celebrate the Australian premiere in Sydney. 

Many homages have also been made to the original production, the Wizard of Oz, for the Australian premiere, Grande wore Lorraine Schwartz jewellery in homage to the original Glinda. Grande’s custom Thom Browne Gingham outfit at the LA WICKED premiere was inspired by Dorothy.

Grande in Thom Browne and Erivo in Louis Vuitton at the LA WICKED Premiere.