Sustainability is at the core of Maria McManus’ design process, and her resort 2025 collection continued this with minimalist silhouettes and ethically sourced fabrics.
This season the Irish designer took inspiration from a visual story from climate magazine Atmos that documented the waste crisis in Chile’s Atacama Desert.
“This collection was inspired by the Atacama Desert where the First World tends to dump all of its excess inventory,” she said. “At first I was caught off guard. You hear about Nigeria, Ghana and Chile being the dumping grounds and I figured it was our inventory or things that we’ve discarded — worn, handed down or discarded — but it’s not. It’s actually excess inventory, so 85 percent of it is actually companies dumping all of their excess inventory.”
McManus interpreted this inspiration through a desert-like color palette of beige, white and lilac and by homing in on her commitment to using sustainable fabrics. She also stayed true to her minimalist design codes, creating sleek, versatile pieces that focus on craft versus distracting ornamentation.
Several styles were created in a recycled merino wool that is mulesing-free, such as a structured coat and relaxed hoodie. McManus also offered many of her go-to silhouettes, like sweaters created in her signature organic cotton blend.
McManus entered the denim category this season, introducing bow-leg jeans with a twisted side seam that carried on her polished design ethos. She highlighted the jeans and another trouser style created in organic cotton as key styles in the lineup.
The collection’s minimalist, traditional styles were balanced with some laid-back and ultra-feminine options, such as a cropped blazer with matching drawstring trousers, a sheer organza set and a lace knee-length skirt paired with a wool bodysuit.
Overall, McManus’ collection showed her understanding of her minimalist-leaning consumer and how to continuously offer sustainable options using innovative fabrics and materials.