Fashion flies the motherplane into Milan Design Week

Milan Fashion Week may already happen four times a year, but now it seems fashion’s heavyweights are coming for the city’s design week too. Home to the world’s biggest and most prestigious furniture trade fair, Salone del Mobile, Milan Design Week takes place every April and is currently in full swing, ending on April 13. Also in full swing are the many fashion installations, for example…

Stone Island has taken over Capsule Plaza with the next iteration of the brand’s ongoing music initiative, titled Friendly Pressure: Studio One. And while furniture brands present beautiful, tranquil interiors, Stone Island delivered an immersive sonic experience, complete with a week-long cultural program of music sessions and DJ sets.

Stone Island at Milan Design Week — Stone Island’s takeover at Milan Design WeekStone Island

Elsewhere, Jonathan Anderson’s final act at Loewe is…teapots. That’s right, before packing up his desk at the Spanish house, Anderson curated an exhibition of Loewe teapots by artists such Minsuk Cho, Sam Bakewell, Min Chen, and Laia Arqueros, which are currently on show. Ikea celebrated 30 years of showing at Milan Design Week with its new Stockholm collection and an exhibition titled Do Something. Change Everything – bringing a dose of Scandinavian simplicity to the Italian streets.

The Row subtly unveiled its debut homeware collection earlier this week, whilst Miu Miu’s literary club got together to discuss the works of Simone de Beauvoir and Fumiko Enchi. Saint Laurent and Charlotte Perriand are hosting an exhibition together, curated by Anthony Vaccarello until the end of the week, meanwhile Gucci is hosting its Bamboo Encounters display inside a 16th century cloister. Vans even managed to beam in Björk, and that’s only mentioning a fraction of design week’s major fashion takeovers. If you were too busy catching up on all the goings-on in Italy, or simply catching some rays in London, here’s everything else you missed in fashion this week.

Courtesy of Burberry

BURBERRY TURNS UP THE HEAT

It may only be April, but it’s felt like July in the UK this week. Coincidentally, Burberry chose this week to reveal its summer 2025 campaign ‘High Summer’, starring Alva Claire, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley and tennis player Jack Draper. Though the clothes might be made in Britain, this campaign certainly wasn’t. See more here.

Courtesy of Swarovski

SWAROVSKI AND ARI RETURN

After announcing Ariana Grande as brand ambassador last summer, the pop princess and Oscar nominee has fronted several of Swarovski’s recent campaigns. Now she’s back with another, this time the 1960s-inspired SS25 campaign; featuring bold lilac, green and pink colourways, the collection is perfect for a trip to the Emerald City.

Courtesy of Rains

MAKE IT RAIN(S)

While the sun has been shining over London, it was raining in the Danish city of Aarhus last week… sort of. The city is home to outerwear brand Rains’ headquarters, and last week, the brand invited journalists into its HQ to witness its AW25 fashion show, titled ‘Forever’.

Courtesy of CDG

COMME DES GARÇONS DROPS NEW NIKE SENSE 96

Seen first on the SS25 Comme des Garçons Homme Plus catwalk in Paris, the Japanese brand’s reimagining of the Nike Sense 96 trainer has officially launched across CDG and Dover Street Market stores. The shoe, which comes with a special wave-textured sole, is available in three colourways: pink, black and white. Shop here.

Courtesy of Pangaia

PANGAIA LEADS THE WAY FOR SUSTAINABLE DESIGN

Italian athleisure brand Pangaia just dropped its latest collection, titled (gaia)PLNT Nylon. The title references the innovative materials used in the new styles – plant-based materials are forged from castor seeds and are turned into durable, renewable and ultra functional fabric. Not to mention the sleek, all-black aesthetic. The futuristic, plant-powered drop is a limited collection, so shop it while you can here.

Courtesy of Cupra

CUPRA IS DRIVEN BY DESIGN

Also unveiled during Milan Design Week, Cupra’s latest offering sees the car brand expand via the creation of a new division: the CUPRA Design House. Born from its obsession with design, the new unit explores creative territories like fashion, objects, and cultural collaborations, including a partnership with eco-luggage brand Harper Collective. “Design is about emotion, about the energy that comes from breaking barriers and rewriting the rules,” says Cupra Design House’s chief design officer Jorge Diez.