Rotate gives its signature sexy treatment to feminine '50s silhouettes
“Sexy” isn’t necessarily a word one would associate with the '50s (unless discussing Marilyn Monroe or Brigitte Bardot), but leave it to Rotate to inject a bit of sex appeal into just about anything. In researching the autumn/winter '24 collection, which closed out Copenhagen Fashion Week in a warehouse met with a red carpet and massive chandeliers, designers Thora Valdimars and Jeanette Madsen spent several days in the library of Copenhagen’s Design Museum, doing a deep dive into the decade and picking out their favourite details – notably, those nipped waists. Then, they made it Rotate. “We kind of made it into our more sexy Rotate universe, with a nod to the '50s,” says Valdimars.
The result is a collection that serves body-ody-ody by way of an ultra-feminine shape. “Thora and I have always been digging into silhouettes. We were drawn to the '50s silhouette with the thin waist and the new lengths,” says Madsen, referencing the mid-calf hemlines favourited by this season’s frocks. Speaking of frocks, true to form, there are more than a few. Some are sweet lace nighties, others are draped just so. Elsewhere, however, the designers find an everyday-interpretation of '50s attire by way of delicate knits paired with sequinned skirts. Then there’s the denim – a fabric that was just entering women’s wardrobes in the '50s. There’s come coated for extra sheen, fashioned into peplum going out tops and relaxed trousers.
The grand finale found its muse in one icon of the '50s: Elizabeth Taylor. Specifically, her tumultuous, much-documented love life. The show closed out with eight exuberant wedding dresses to commemorate each of Taylor’s eight marriages. “Our wedding collection has become such a big part of the brand,” says Valdimars. “So we wanted to incorporate it in the show.” Describing the overall bridal aesthetic as ‘dark romance’ the dresses are boldly, unapologetically Rotate. Sheer and sexy, they’re perhaps more afterparty than ‘I do’ (though the exploding floral bolero, slipped over a floor-sweeping tube dress would travel seamlessly from ceremony to soiree).
Speaking of afterparties, theirs took place in the show venue shortly after the designers took their bow – a raucous event heavy on Belvedere and good times. And what’s more Rotate than that?
See the full Rotate AW24 collection below:
Rotate - AW24
