October 5, 2025 |
A few things are certain when attending a Noir Kei Ninomiya show: there will be harnesses, headdresses and three dimensional looks that span the width of a runway. For spring 2026, the designer checked all these items off the list with ease, creating a starry-eyed collection that felt fit for dreamers. The designer told Vogue backstage via translator that this was the intention. “It was something very playful. Happiness. Like childhood, the first drawing. And it makes this idea of the collection.” The result was joyful indeed, opening with a spangly chest piece worn over a midi white tulle dress coupled with a matching mask by Shinji Konishi.
From there the show unfolded to include dresses with protrusions that ended in delicate stars. Part fantastical creature, part marine-life inspired, it turns out these observances weren’t too far-fetched of an assumption: Serving as the soundtrack to the show was a poem read by Aoyagi Natsumi which included a listing of sealife. After all, what is the one animal with a similar shape but a starfish? As the tentacle-like creations bobbed with every step, you could easily imagine a young child dreaming up humans who merged with aquatic beings on paper and finding these sketches brought into reality. Perhaps the looks that most embodied joy and naivete came later, as the three-dimensional pieces came to fill the runway. Resembling tinsel or sparkly pipe cleaners, the geometrical designs were arts and crafts hour blown up to 1000 per cent, in the most luxurious and creative manner possible.
Of course not everything was a reflection of childhood happiness, there was plenty of grounded grown up clothing as well. Sparkling pentagram bralettes worn over dresses added a bit of edge, especially when coupled with neon face covering. Blazers, always a staple for the brand, were sleek and sharp and styled with harnesses. As for shoes, new to this season were loafers and creepers, made in conjunction with Jimmy Choo. Covered in star-shaped grommets, they lent the punk edge fans of Noir Kei Ninomiya crave. Expect those to be big sellers come spring.
Photography courtesy of Noir Kei Ninomiya.
