First Look: H&M unveils new collection with Stella McCartney
Swedish fashion retailer H&M have unveiled the first look at its upcoming collaboration with Stella McCartney, some twenty years after its first partnership with the British designer, which launches on May 7.
In 2005, the collaboration marked H&M’s second-ever design collaboration, following the sellout success of the inaugural collection with Karl Lagerfeld. McCartney’s original collection with the high street retailer focused on workwear staples and wearable separates, and this time around, the collection highlights the designer and activist’s 25-year history of design, prioritising recycled materials and innovative usage of feedstock for coated materials, such as industrial corn and recycled vegetable oil, as well as certified organic cottons and wool.
Spanning apparel, bags, footwear and jewellery for women, the collection “unites past and present,” combining beloved current signatures, such as oversized shirting, trenches and sharp tailoring, with playful iconic hits from McCartney’s early archive, including bejewelled prints and slogan tops.
Commenting on the collaboration, McCartney said in a statement: “I see this collection as a journey through my fashion history. It is a true mix of current classics and some of my old favourites that showcase my first forays into fashion and the development of my signatures. It’s playful, strong, sparkling, joyful, refined.”
Stella McCartney H&M collection launching May 7
Key items in the ready-to-wear collection include a classic trench coat in light beige-khaki made from 100 percent ROC certified cotton, meaning that farms must restore farm soil and biodiversity and use no artificial pesticides and fertilisers, alongside a semi-sheer lace mini dress adorned with crystal-like beads crafted from 80 percent recycled glass, matching pyjama style trousers and shirts in organic cotton, and a triangle bra featuring dangle glass beads, made from 80 percent post-consumer glass.
Other items include rib-knitted dresses and tops with McCartney’s signature Falabella chain at the neck, a long white gown with a cape-like sleeve, sparkling partywear, separates and denims, as well as mesh dresses and tops in an archival cherry print.
There is also a cropped bomber with a smock detail at the cuff in a snakeskin-inspired print and finish, where the coated material is made in part from recycled vegetable oils and agricultural crops, such as straw.
The line also has casual pieces, including hoodies and T-shirts decorated with Stella’s name, or an airbrush-style white horse that nods to the tongue-in-cheek aesthetic and vibrancy of McCartney’s celebrated years designing in Paris in the late 90s and early 00s. There is even a white mini-T-shirt embellished with ‘Rock Royalty' in studs, for a dose of nostalgia and a homage to a style worn by McCartney herself at the 1999 Met Gala.
Stella McCartney accessories focal point of collaboration with H&M
Alongside the apparel, the accessories include six bags, ranging from small, branded shoulder bags to giant totes featuring McCartney’s famous spherical logo and a timeless chocolate-toned bag with a chain-detail strap. Some pieces incorporate McCartney’s signature Falabella chain, including necklaces and earrings, crafted in recycled metal in mixed tones, ballerina flats in an animal print, white slingback heels with McCartney’s signature sculptural curved heels, and loafers with chain detailing on the front.
For a playful touch, the collection also includes keyrings, one in a bold resin cherry-shaped design and the other in rubber red Stella lettering, as well as GOTS-certified, distinct silk scarves that showcase the collection’s key cherry and horse prints and motifs.
Ann-Sofie Johansson, creative advisor and head of design womenswear at H&M, added: “Stella has always had a bold vision for fashion, and this collection tracks her journey from a young, rule-breaking voice to a master of timeless design.
“Every single piece in the collection is desirable and tells a unique and bold story.”
Prices for the apparel range from 27.99 pounds / 29.99 euros / 39.99 US dollars for a ‘Stella’ branded white bodysuit to 279.99 pounds / 299 euros / 329 US dollars for the oversized car coat in grey melange RWS-certified wool.
The accessories range from 27.99 pounds / 29.99 euros / 39.99 US dollars for the Stella McCartney red keyring to 189.99 pounds / 199 euros / 219 US dollars for the Falabella chain-detailed bag, which has been partly crafted from recycled polyamide.