Editor in chief Martina Bonnier on why Vogue Scandinavia's latest digital cover – Desiré Inglander's big bridal dress rehearsal – is not to be missed
It’s been a year and a half since Mondo Duplantis called to tell me he was planning to propose to long-time girlfriend Desiré Inglander and he wanted Vogue Scandinavia to help. Since that fateful phone call, which resulted in the viral proposal seen around the world, I have felt very much a part of the superstar couple’s forthcoming wedding, set to take place in France this June. When it came time for Desiré to choose a wedding dress, it only made sense that Vogue Scandinavia would be part of that, too.
And so, together with the bride-to-be, we conceived this digital cover story, which finds Desiré trying on the most extraordinary bridal looks in an editorialised effort to find the perfect dress. To complete the fantasy, photographer Elisabeth Toll captured Desiré at Confidencen at Ulriksdals Slott, Sweden’s oldest Rococo theatre, built on the grounds of a 17th-century castle.
Desiré is a woman who likes to be in control, and to this day she can’t believe Mondo and I managed to catch her totally by surprise on her engagement day. For the upcoming wedding, there will be no such surprises. In our digital cover story, Desiré offers an amuse bouche of the juiciest details of her upcoming nuptials, from the venue to the vows to the dress. Mondo confirms that his fiancée is as “locked in” as he was when he was training for the Olympics.
On our shoot day, however, Desiré once again relinquished control, particularly when it came to her co-stars, Monty the horse and Leif the white peacock, who more or less did their own thing throughout the day. Then there was the weather. Yes, it was just as cold as it appears, even inside the extraordinary theatre, which has no heating (the castle is only open in the summer – heating would warp its historic halls).
But Desiré was an absolute trooper. Luckily the beauty of the looks offered continuous excitement. It was a joy to see her get out of her comfort zone (she has a well-defined personal style that favours Scandinavian minimalism), pulling off over-the-top couture creations (the craftsmanship apparent in these looks is truly extraordinary). She even gamely went for it with her hair and makeup, trading in her loose waves and natural glam for early aughts baby blue eyeshadow and crimped extensions.
In the weeks leading up to this shoot, the office looked like a bridal shop. Every day a new dress would come, in a massive box. All of our editors caught wedding fever as we unpacked the layers of tulle (worth noting, the biggest bridal designers were keen to see their looks on Desiré, the ultimate Scandinavian bride).
Yes, there’s something magical about a wedding, about a wedding look. Add to that a castle, a peacock and a fresh dusting of snow and you truly have a fairytale.
