September 24, 2025 |
If you know Grace Coddington, you know her cats. They’ve been her confidantes, her muses and – let’s be honest – the unofficial mascots of her creative universe. Pumpkin and Blanket, her red-haired, wide-eyed felines, have long trotted alongside her imagination, making cameos in illustrations, interviews and those deliciously candid stories that orbit fashion’s inner sanctum. Now, they’re taking centre stage at Louis Vuitton.
For the latest instalment of Louis Vuitton Travels With, Coddington has dreamed up an adventure that’s part graphic novel, part wardrobe fantasy. It’s a sequel, of sorts, to her 2019 Catogram collection, which cheekily set her cats against Nicolas Ghesquière’s dogs, Achille and Léon. This time, Pumpkin and Blanket embark on a surreal itinerary: Sydney one day, the Amazon the next, the Great Wall of China on Tuesday and – naturally – outer space by Friday. The escapism is charmingly literal, mapped out in patches reminiscent of the labels that once adorned Vuitton’s historic trunks.
Coddington also brings her own sense of pragmatic romance to the wardrobe: midi dresses in house prints, pyjamas somehow smarter than any boardroom suit and footwear that stays sensibly flat. Think silk and cotton for ease, cashmere for comfort and plaids for long-haul journeys. “My cats are not just adorable and comforting companions, they are also a constant source of inspiration,” she reminds us – and so the clothes feel like a wardrobe designed for those who travel as much with their hearts as with their passports.
And because no Grace project is complete without a trunk, she’s conjured up her own: a plum-hued secretary trunk, lined with compartments for brushes, notebooks and, of course, a nook for Pumpkin and Blanket. Crafted in plum-coloured foldable nylon, there’s an exclusive line of bags and kits up for grabs too. It’s playful yet reverent, a nod to Vuitton’s origins in the art of packing and the romantic notion that travel is as much about memory as it is about movement.
Coddington’s LV is a dreamscape where fashion’s strict lines blur into whimsy and, as ever, the cats get the last word.
Photography courtesy of Louis Vuitton.
