The debut collection of acclaimed Scottish designer Christopher Kane for Mulberry was always bound to be one of the highlights of this season’s London Fashion Week. When announced, the partnership was not immediately an obvious choice—Kane, known for his daring use of unusual materials and bright color, seemed a far cry from Mulberry’s preppy, conservative-leaning aesthetic. Following Saturday’s show, however, it is clear that Mulberry by Christopher Kane is the collaboration fashion didn’t know it wanted but desperately needed.
Kane’s collection draws on the legacy of the brand’s early 2010s heyday, reinterpreting and refreshing the look for 2026. One of the collection’s key motifs, a symmetrical geometric cutout, clearly references the front flap of Mulberry’s iconic [2003 Bayswater] bag(https://graziadaily.co.uk/fashion/news/mulberry-bayswater-bag-20-years-celebrity-fans/). In true Kane fashion, nearly every look included some iteration of the Bayswater flap. Although this could easily have made the collection stiff and repetitive, Kane resists this trap. The motif is marvelously flexible, even when repeated across the same category of garment. The collection includes several different kinds of dresses. Looks eleven and thirty-two feature short, baby-doll sheath dresses, the ruffles made up Bayswater flaps. The use of smooth, supple leather elevates the dress, transforming a typically flouncy and youthful silhouette into an elegant yet playful look.
Staying true to the brand’s preppy, professional roots, Kane’s collection includes several looks made for the coolest woman in the office. Looks nine and twenty-five, for example, both feature leather sheath dresses that each reinterpret the Bayswater flap. Look nine sees the flap used both on the shoulders and at the hem, creating a futuristic take on an office staple. In look twenty-five, the flap is both bigger and rotated by forty-five degrees, used only to create a dramatic, V-shaped neckline. The result in both cases is a dress that can be easily taken from day to night, keeping in line with the general 2010s revival seen in many other collections this season.
Kane’s Mulberry, however, is clearly intended to be more than an office wardrobe. In fact, interspersed with his cool-girl professional looks are casual, practical looks that both harken back to the brand’s countryside-forward legacy, as well as modernizing the collection in unexpected ways.
Look ten, for example, features a black leather harness which seems to reference several opposing ideas. The accessory manages to be reminiscent of a riding crop, a BDSM harness, Lederhosen-esque suspenders, and leather handbags all at once. The tension between these opposing references permeates throughout the entire collection, allowing Kane to entertain several different versions of Mulberry simultaneously. The effect is a modern, refreshed, and pleasantly surprising take on a brand that was, it is now clear, due for a revival.
