Rebecca Hessel Cohen wanted a wardrobe fit for a queen for fall 2026.
“It’s Blair Waldorf meets Marie Antoinette,” she said of the collection, which derived inspiration from the exhibition devoted to the latter at the V&A in London, which opened late last year. “It’s beauty, romanticism, Rococo, but mixed with ’90s silhouettes that aren’t as ruffled.”
The nostalgic takes on European luxury are hardly new for LoveShackFancy, nor are the Gilded Age uptown mansions Hessel Cohen likes to show her collections in. But a refreshed color palette (“There’s a lot more dark chocolate brown, and I got pretty with the moodier pinks — I’m obsessed with makeup palettes,” she said) and a full spectrum of materials made the designer’s most consistent references seem fresh.
Among the standouts were the clear emphasis on beadwork, which Hessel Cohen said she wanted to pair with simpler silhouettes. “This one is inspired by hand-beaded Lesage beadwork,” she said in a gesture to one of the more kaleidoscopic offerings. “And we also have a good amount of corsetry.”
Despite the brand’s predilection for all things frou-frou, Hessel Cohen said the corsetry throughout the collection was the brand’s most literal take on the structure to date. She also put a pink twist on a jacket that referenced a John Galliano-era Dior Bar jacket.
“It’s beautiful and sophisticated, and it can be worn either with jeans or a little suiting,” she said. “We styled it with tulle and some of the beaded pieces. But it’s all simple silhouettes, super sweet.”
Chunkier knitwear and faux furs rounded out the more casual sides of the collection, as did lace-trimmed dresses and knits. “We have all this brushed cashmere,” Hessel Cohen said. “Some of this is a nod to ‘Gossip Girl,’ Upper East Side, you know — our girl.”