Mira Mikati has accumulated new experiences after publishing a book “Colorful World” in the previous season, which could theoretically be the beginning of new experiences.
For her last birthday, she stayed up all night trying to catch the Northern Lights in Lapland. Shortly thereafter, “as if the universe was calling,” the designer jumped at the opportunity to visit the North Pole, and a few hours later, without research or preparation, headed straight to the airport in Svalbard, Norway.
“It’s not as colorful, but it has a different kind of magic,” Micarti said over tea on a recent morning in Paris. “In Lapland, you have greens, blues and purples, and cruises to the North Pole let you walk on ice floes.” Yes, there are polar bears, but sadly, they’re all too skinny these days, she reports explain.
Blue skies, uninterrupted sunshine and a fresh perspective on the urgency of caring for the planet converged on a collection that the designer said was inspired by white—the most visible on a sweater with a detachable polar bear. Fascinating – and sunrise/sunset shades. Wool smocks in these colors come with a matching bag. Tang orange corduroy covered with bright flowers. A new focus on tailoring resulted in a sky blue jacket embellished with appliqués of beaded mushrooms, hearts, flowers and stars. Key pieces borrowed from the menswear lexicon—a gray-green herringbone wool suit, a tailored wool coat—bloomed. A new collaboration with Javier Calleja — who is currently hosting an exhibition in his hometown of Malaga — featured a bomber jacket that proclaimed “today is your lucky day,” and an elongated cardigan with rainbow crochet sleeves, And a first foray into loungewear, with a limited edition of hand-crocheted cushions made in London.
Other outerwear options include a trench coat with daisy woven pockets on the front and a knit back, as well as ski jackets in colorful pink and orange with yellow pockets. Now that Mikati is obsessed with the North Pole, she sets her sights on Antarctica, home of the penguins. I bet some colorful stories will surface there too.
