When I was younger, I played Animal Crossing on my GameCube for hours at a time. I remember obsessively tidying up my village and befriending a wide cast of characters, but what I most definitely don’t remember is my villager wearing designer apparel. If I remember correctly, I’m not even confident that my player wore pants, let alone new-season buys. I digress but, in Animal Crossing: New Horizons for the Switch, players can officially wear the Monse Spring 2021 collection, which was just revealed to the public via social media on Sunday, February 14, during New York Fashion Week Fall 2021.
Your Animal Crossing character has access to the collection immediately thanks to the brand’s partnership with Crossing the Runway, but consumers have to wait a bit to experience the sporty-chic line. The luxury label’s founders, Laura Kim and Fernando Garcia, inject the SS21 collection with a casual, whimsical spirit that takes the form of cool asymmetrical hems and unique textile combinations: terry sweatshirts with tulle knits with pearl embellishments and tailored suiting with natural wood hardware. To bring the collection to life, the designers took on the creative challenge of utilizing fabric from past seasons. “It was literally the only option we had,” Kim said in an interview. “We would have ordered new fabric like we do every season, but our CEO told us that just wasn’t an option.”
If you’re wondering why you’re just coming across the Monse SS21 collection now, as opposed to last September, it’s because Kim and Garcia restricted access to only buyers. They used buyers’ insight to fine-tune their designs before perfecting their lookbooks and short film, both of which star American fashion model, Indira Scott, shot by NYC-based photographer and director, Karen Collins.
Below, experience the Monse S21 collection in its entirety.
