Calling all those Attenborough-ettes with a fashionable bent: H&M’s new designer collaboration is here and it’s one for lovers of nature.
READ: A CONSCIOUS UNCOUPLING: How H&M – one of the world’s largest fashion retail businesses – is making good on a commitment to the planet
H&M heads back to nature with Beirut-based designer, Sandra Mansour, who is the latest designer to collaborate with the fashion powerhouse for a limited-edition collection called “Fleur de Soleil.” Inspired by strong female artists and the beauty of nature, the Sandra Mansour x H&M collection is both ethereal and earthy, paying homage to the natural wonders of the world and the strength of women.
“The inspiration for the H&M collection was nature and natural elements, especially the sunflower, which represents the cycle of life and its dependency on sun and light,” Mansour explains. Fascinated by the way a sunflower follows the sun from day into night, sunflower motifs and florals enrich the pieces.
While fabrication found its muse in the form of artists. “Poets and painters inspired the selection of fabric – the dark laces, jacquards and embroidered organza.”
Paying homage to a troupe of female artists – Toyen, Dorothea Tanning, Lena Leclercq and Bibi Zogbé – the collection features innately feminine tropes like ruffles, lace and delicate layers, subverted with strength and edginess via tough silhouette. Flouncy blouses, dresses and skirts sit alongside more structured pieces like tailored blazers, t-shirts – even a hoodie.
“With the “Fleur de Soleil” collection, I want to talk to women around the world by sending a message of hope, something we really need right now.” Indeed, in these uplifting pieces you can’t help but feel hopeful. Now to find a patch of nature to enjoy them in.
The Sandra Mansour x H&M collection is available from H&M boutiques nationally from August 6.
