LONDON — For Spring/Summer 2027, Dreaming Eli examines the space between childhood fantasy and the pragmatic realities of adulthood.
Titled Dreamers in Exile, the collection opens with an exploration of home—the objects, rituals, and environments that shape identity long before they are questioned, and the subsequent work of remaking those elements into something deeply personal.
The collection draws its narrative foundation from Sicily, treated here as a psychological landscape rather than a strictly geographic one. Archived family photographs, familiar vistas, and inherited traditions provide the groundwork for the season.
Central to this story is vintage heirloom lingerie, carrying the tangible memory of a previous generation. Restructured through Dreaming Eli’s aesthetic lens, these delicate garments retain their original intimacy while taking on updated forms.
A similar ethos extends across the materials used throughout the line. Stained fabrics, detailed patchworks, and eroded textiles reference the passage of time, while torn and layered compositions keep the traces of past garments visible. Rather than preserving history in its original state, fragments are dismantled, reworked, and integrated into new silhouettes.
“It’s a story of broken realities and messed up dreams. It’s the passing of time from the same window. Rusted stairs. Stained lace. It’s the romance of something that is stuck in time—forever, with stories to tell, with tears absorbed among the fibers of a life,” states the brand. “It’s an empty house with eroded curtains staring against a burning sky, a wind that makes them dance slowly, like two lovers going through life together.”
The narrative acknowledges the pull of a world that appears frozen in time—where memories remain undisturbed and youthful idealism persists. Yet, upon closer inspection, structural tensions emerge. The traditional codes of family, femininity, and beauty that once offered comfort can also impose limitations.
Ultimately, Dreamers in Exile addresses the longing for a home that exists primarily in memory—a place often sought after, only to reveal that leaving was an essential part of the journey.
Photos by Matt Draper/Fabuk