At any given runway show, a brand will typically show between 30 and 80 full looks to pique the interest of buyers and editors. Increasingly, though, designers are reconsidering the wisdom of presenting a completely new offering each season, considering the sustainability implications involved and the costs of sampling. For emerging designers in particular, the current system no longer makes sense.
“I’ve been doing ready-to-wear, but it felt like something needed to change,” says London-based Icelandic designer Sól Hansdóttir. The Central Saint Martins alum — known for her sculptural designs made from deadstock fabrics — has presented three full collections since graduating in 2021, debuting her Spring/Summer 2025 collection as part of Copenhagen Fashion Week’s One To Watch program in 2024.
After holding her first London Fashion Week presentation last season, the designer is returning to the schedule again for SS27.
But while her creations have proven a hit with A-listers like Robyn and Amelia Gray, Hansdóttir found her designs — priced between £800 and £2,500 — were less accessible to a wider audience. So she has decided to move away from producing fully formed clothing altogether, instead fashioning what she describes as “hybrid garments” — pieces that sit somewhere between a garment and an accessory.
They include bamboo jersey neckties that hang down like a necklace-cum-scarf; a backless pinny that ties around the waist, inspired by Hansdóttir’s signature spiral-cut skirts; and a backless bolero-like top, designed to jazz up an old T-shirt or dress.
Entry pieces, including the neckties and “naughty pearls” (marble necklaces covered in mesh), will now start from £80. Mid-tier pieces, such as pinnies and bolero tops, will range from £250 to £500, while more complex designs, like a sequined apron dress, will remain at around £800.
A renewed focus on styling
The idea of a hybrid garment is not a completely new one: in recent years, we’ve seen brands like Ganni selling detached Peter Pan collars (priced at around £55 for a cotton version, compared to £145 for a collared shirt) and Simone Rocha introducing embellished harness tops (priced at around £795, compared to over £1,000 for a similar dress), designed to be worn over shirts and dresses. For Hansdóttir, the concept allows for a renewed emphasis on styling.
Instead of encouraging customers to overhaul their wardrobes, she wants them to consider how these new pieces could update items they already own.
“It’s not about having to buy the whole look; this is supposed to unlock your own wardrobe,” the designer explains. “I’m very excited about giving up control to the wearer.” As part of her London Fashion Week presentation, the collection will be styled with clothes by other brands — an almost unheard-of move that shows how serious Hansdóttir is about the approach (she declined to name the brand she’s using).
In many ways, the concept aligns with a growing desire for personal expression in the way we dress. The “messy girl” trend is tipped to dominate the runways for SS27, via “layering and color-clashing in different hues”, as well as “a lot of like stacked T-shirts, sheer overlays, contrasting tanks, and hybrid pieces,” according to Frida Tordhag, an analyst at Paris-based firm Heuritech.
Elements of the aesthetic have already been seen at New York Fashion Week, where triangle bra tops were layered over long-sleeved tees at CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund finalist Aisling Camps’s debut show, and sequin tops were styled over shirts and tanks on the runway at Zankov. Outside on the pavements, LA-based label Charlie Beads’s deadstock corsages adorned the outfits of showgoers — a piece that is not too dissimilar from Hansdóttir’s own “leftover brooch”, made from scraps of sequined fabric to minimize wastage.
More accessible product
Beyond helping customers restyle their own wardrobes, Hansdóttir hopes the shift to hybrid garments will make her designs more accessible, both in terms of how easy they are to wear and their price point. “I think people sometimes found the pieces hard to put into their wardrobe and style,” the designer says of her more flamboyant creations.
“But I always wanted people to take my pieces, and go and buy milk in Tesco. I love the idea of [them] being used a lot.”
Having previously worked on a made-to-order basis, the hybrid garments will allow Hansdóttir to produce multiples for the first time, albeit in limited quantities. A small number of pieces will be available directly after the presentation; she plans to make a run of between 50 and 100 neckties in total and around 10 units of the more elaborate designs.
As Hansdóttir primarily uses deadstock alongside certified textiles, she can “just finish the fabric” currently in her studio before sourcing more material for future drops. Initial feedback has been positive, with some of the designer’s private clients already adopting hybrid pieces as part of custom looks.
Because the new pieces are highly adjustable by design, Hansdóttir can also be more inclusive with sizing: most will come in one size, while a handful will be made in two sizes to cater for a wider range of body types. “That will also help in terms of production, in terms of not having overstock of one size,” the designer notes.
With a growing number of brands now operating outside of the traditional fashion system, Hansdóttir hopes that others will get on board with her hybrid garments concept too. Currently, the designer has no plans to produce full-look collections “ever again”, although she will continue to create custom pieces for private clients.
“I feel like this is [the] future,” she says. “I think this is good for the business; it’s good for people; it’s better for a lot of stuff.
Why would I go back to the other thing?”