Susie Cave is going back to basics. Two years after closing her label The Vampire’s Wife, which was beloved for its romantic, fantastical frocks, she’s returning to the design fold with Susie Cave, Weddings and Funerals, a label with just 25 silhouettes and designs and an appointment-only boutique in Kensington. After the huge success of The Vampire’s Wife, which was named after an unfinished novel by her husband Nick Cave, and found fans in Kate Middleton, Kylie Minogue and Florence Welch among others, Cave’s next move is about stripping it back.
“At a certain point I no longer recognised myself within the rhythm of traditional seasons and collections according to the fashion industry,” Cave tells Broadsheet. “I wanted to return to something more instinctive and interesting. The process itself is also slower and more considered. Many of the dresses are made in very small numbers. In a strange way, stepping back allowed me to become more precise about what I truly love.”
The concise first collection embraces the possibilities that come with working only with black and white. Cave says “silhouette, movement, weight and texture” become the focus when using a monochrome palette, and here she’s used materials like silk, organza and velvet in varying weights for different climates. “Black and white creates a discipline and a focus,” Cave says. “It feels ceremonial, timeless and slightly mysterious – which is very important to me. Occasionally there may be touches of gold or very special colours for bespoke pieces, but the core language of the house is monochrome. It gives the collection a kind of emotional purity.”
And while the label’s name suggests garb for mourning and celebration, the pieces are designed to be worn for all occasions; Cave is instead interested in using weddings and funerals as a way to explore the performative and sacred aspects of costume. “Weddings and funerals are both profound human rituals, and I liked the idea that the clothes could exist somewhere between romance and mourning, joy and melancholy,” she says.
Cave references pieces that are foundational to the house, including long dresses in black or white that are architectural in their construction, but soft in movement. “I’m always searching for that tension between structure and weightlessness,” Cave says. “They can feel protective, devotional, romantic or even slightly ghostly depending on the wearer.” Each design can be personalised and is custom-fitted to the wearer in the house’s new by-appointment Kensington boutique.
The intimate boutique opens on June 1 and is designed to feel like “stepping into another world slightly removed from ordinary London life”. Cave wanted to steer away from the overwhelming amount of product in more traditional luxury stores, and has worked closely with architect Groves Natcheva to select every element: wood veneers cover the windows and can be shuttered to create privacy, while walls are covered in historic Zuber wallpaper. The overall effect is one of “softness and secrecy”. A glass-topped table anchors the space, while the label’s ethereal dresses hang from a rail that runs the length of one wall.
“The dresses themselves are also treated almost like objects or spirits within the space,” Cave says. “Hopefully people feel slightly transported when they enter – not into fantasy exactly, but into somewhere quieter, stranger and more emotional.”
Susie Cave, Weddings and Funerals, opens on June 1.
Susie Cave, Weddings and Funerals
Kensington Church Walk, W8 4NB
Hours:
By appointment only
