At London Fashion Week on September 19, 2025, two designers captivated the fashion world with strikingly different yet equally evocative Spring-Summer 2026 collections. Paul Costelloe and Bora Aksu, each with their own distinct creative voice, presented designs that told deeply personal and emotionally charged stories through fabric, color, and silhouette. While Costelloe’s collection evoked the effortless glamour of 1960s California, Aksu’s showcased a more introspective exploration of imperfections, drawing inspiration from a deeply personal and emotional place.
Costelloe’s collection, titled “Boulevard of Dreams,” drew inspiration from the golden age of 1960s California. His designs immediately transported the audience to the sun-drenched, carefree world of the West Coast during the height of its cultural revolution. The collection featured a series of short, feminine dresses that captured the essence of the era with their soft, pastel color palettes and delicate floral prints. Each piece seemed to echo the free-spirited, youthful energy of California’s beach culture, conjuring images of long days spent by the sea, where the pressure to look perfect was replaced by the joy of embracing the moment. The pastel tones, ranging from soft pinks to muted blues and greens, further emphasized this nostalgic, sun-soaked imagery, evoking a sense of innocence and optimism.
In stark contrast, Bora Aksu’s collection celebrated the beauty of imperfection and the strength found in vulnerability. Inspired by his personal collection of broken dolls, Aksu’s designs sought to create an emotional connection with the audience, encouraging them to embrace flaws as an integral part of identity. The collection was rich in detail, featuring layered dresses that spoke to a sense of fragility and emotional resilience. Each piece was meticulously crafted, with embroidery, lace trimmings, and delicate stitching used to create a sense of intricate beauty. These elements, combined with the soft, flowing fabrics, highlighted the delicate nature of the garments, suggesting that true strength comes from embracing one’s scars and embracing imperfections. The bonnet-style hats added an additional layer of poignancy to the collection, invoking images of childhood innocence yet tinged with a sense of vulnerability. Aksu’s approach was deeply personal, using fashion as a medium to tell a story about healing, emotional resilience, and the courage to confront the imperfections that define us.
What made these two collections particularly compelling was the way in which they represented opposing aspects of the human experience. Costelloe’s designs celebrated a polished, idealized version of femininity that felt both aspirational and dreamy. His collection was an ode to a time when life seemed simpler, when pastel-colored dresses and floral patterns symbolized an optimistic future. It was the type of fashion that made you dream of a life full of beauty and possibility, the kind of style that made you want to escape into a vintage postcard from a summer vacation.
In contrast, Aksu’s collection was a celebration of the raw, often messy beauty of real life. There was no polished perfection here—only the beauty of the broken, the imperfect, and the emotional resilience that comes with embracing vulnerability. By drawing inspiration from his own experiences and the imagery of broken dolls, Aksu created a world where beauty was not defined by flawlessness but by the way in which one can grow and heal from life’s challenges. The emotional depth of his work spoke directly to the complexities of modern life, where imperfections are no longer something to be hidden but are instead celebrated as a reflection of strength and growth.
The contrast between Costelloe’s nostalgic, dreamlike celebration of femininity and Aksu’s introspective exploration of resilience and vulnerability created a compelling dialogue within the fashion world. Both designers found ways to tap into the emotional undercurrents of the human experience, but they did so in entirely different ways. Costelloe’s collection offered an idealized escape into a sunlit world, while Aksu’s designs offered a deeper, more introspective journey into the raw and imperfect facets of life.
Together, these two collections demonstrated the diverse ways in which fashion can tell stories and evoke emotions. Whether through the polished glamour of a bygone era or the delicate exploration of emotional scars, Costelloe and Aksu proved that fashion is not only about aesthetics but also about the narratives we create and share with the world. Both collections left an indelible mark on London Fashion Week, ensuring that the Spring-Summer 2026 season will be remembered for its emotional depth and the bold, contrasting visions of two incredible designers.