Ditte Reffstrup has always been a daydreamer, sometimes to fault; at least, that’s what her childhood teachers said. But as the creative director of Ganni, it’s one of the many secrets behind the label’s success. The Ganni “look” is a magpie mix of things happily thrown together as if the wearer got distracted: a utility boot with a sweet Peter Pan shirt, an argyle vest with a sequined mini, a feathered frock over a graphic tee. Nothing is ever too perfect or too planned.
Still, even Reffstrup found it difficult to daydream in the gloomy days of winter, when this collection was coming together. Several months and many lockdowns into the pandemic, she felt sapped for inspiration. But rather than dwell on the dismal present, she and her team looked boldly forward, imagining clothes they’d wear on a wild night out—ideally IRL. Reffstrup recalled letting go of what she felt they “needed” to design or what was guaranteed to sell, and instead went for it with audacious, experimental new ideas.
The opening dress is a break from Ganni’s usual silhouettes, pieced together with asymmetrical panels outlined in gold ruffles. Its faux Baroque print appears elsewhere in the collection—on jeans, mesh turtlenecks, and nylon leggings—and mirrors the fancy-kitschy bars where the lookbook was shot. Jet-beaded dresses and minis come with slashed skirts, loosely inspired by the concept of a door or window opening into a new, post- pandemic world. They’ll be no-brainers for holiday parties and New Year’s Eve bashes—this collection will drop in November—ditto the smocked crop tops trimmed with jangly fringe. Reffstrup said you can’t help but dance when you’re wearing one, a little mood-lift in a garment.