Sometimes, fashion shows are too big. Typically, the most theatrical are presented for Cruise season, an in-between time in the retail market when luxury brands have to spend a fortune on staging, VIP guests, and a far-flung destination, all for the sake of viral marketing. In the age of social media, this tactic has become even more inflated, and unfortunately, sometimes the clothes can get lost in the noise, beautiful as they may be.
Last night in Scotland, Dior’s creative director Maria Grazia Chiuri didn’t fall into the trap of the too-big fashion show. Her Cruise 2025 collection paraded through the idyllic grounds of Drummond Castle in Perthshire, a massive 17th-century estate flanked by stone staircases, pebbled pathways, and pristinely manicured gardens. The town is where Christian Dior once held his own fashion shows in the early 1950s, two of which took place at the local Gleneagles Hotel. The setting was, even for those of us staring at it through a screen, magical. Even the celebrities in the front row, which included Jennifer Lawrence and Anya Taylor-Joy, didn’t take away from the scenery.
Bagpipers opened and closed the show as models traversed the runway, which wound endlessly through the grounds. Chiuri drew inspiration from traditional Scottish textiles and tartans and from books written by Clare Hunter on Mary Stuart’s politically charged embroideries. Chiuri and her team also worked with local artisans, including Harris Tweed and Esk Cashmere, as well as Le Kilt, a brand all about, you guessed it, kilts, founded by British designer Samantha McCoach.
Chiuri’s collections tend to iterate on a single theme. Sometimes, there are multiple background stories at play, and in this case there were black and white photo prints of Dior’s 1955 show and charity ball in Scotland on shirts and dresses, a smattering of feminist verbiage on a corset, and a shawl blanket embroidered with a map of Scotland.
But they didn’t distract from the clothes. There was whimsy and punkish ferocity in the rich velvet corsets and embroidered full skirts. Chiuri made armor out of intricately beaded tunic dresses worn open below the waist and with shorts beneath. Victorian mutton sleeves were made modern by slimming down the volumes and silhouettes, and the corsets came with lace-up details and embellishments that brought them out of the Ren Faire and into today’s very real world where women need to suit up for battle. Delicate sheer lace and open-weave gowns were cinched with black leather belts and worn with country boots had a tough edge too this season and underscored the designer’s well-executed intention to bridge past and present and make a statement about the power in dressing.
Dior Cruise 2025
Brooke Bobb is the fashion news director at Harper’s Bazaar, working across print and digital platforms. Previously, she was a senior content editor at Amazon Fashion, and worked at Vogue Runway as senior fashion news writer.