The weather in Scotland is often filled with clouds and rain. However, today’s Dior cruise show was one of those unicorn days where the sun shone bright. When the guests, including Jennifer Lawrence and Lily Collins, arrived at Drummond Castle in Perthshire, the landscape and endless, immaculately manicured gardens served as the perfect backdrop to Maria Grazia Chiuri’s ode to the country and the deep ties that the house holds there.
For the unfamiliar, in his fall 1947 collection, Monsieur Dior featured a look titled Écosse (Scottish). In 1955, he presented his work in Perthshire, in the ballroom of the Gleneagles Hotel, just a stone’s throw from this latest showing. In commemoration of the latter, photographs from that very presentation were transformed into prints and appliqués on tote bags as well as the edges of kilts.
Jennifer Lawrence attends Dior’s cruise 2025 show.
Chiuri was inspired by Clare Hunter’s book Embroidering Her Truth: Mary, Queen of Scots and the Language of Power for this collection, even commissioning the artist Pollyanna Johnson to create a portrait of the legendary figure. The unicorn and the thistle, both national symbols, found their way into her designs, as did a map of Scotland.
But she also drew on more modern-day touchstones. The assortment was full of punk references, including tartans in vibrant purple, crimson red, and mustard yellow. Studs and grommets found on the core Dior bag styles like the Saddle, Lady Dior, and Bobby added a cool and unexpected element to the house’s key shapes. The waders and unzipped biker boots appeared sexy when paired with argyle thigh-high socks.
The clean makeup and simple long single braids worn throughout the show gave a chic nod to the theme as well.
The venue at Drummond Castle.
The juxtaposition of hard and soft was the common thread weaving this extraordinary collection together in an effortless way. Craft is always a big focus of Chiuri’s, and her destination shows have incorporated local artisans—from Chanakya in Mumbai for her fall 2023 show to her linkup with Uniwax for cruise 2020 in Marrakech. The attention to detail and research here was spot-on, with Chiuri enlisting local heritage houses such as Harris Tweed, weaving mill Johnstons of Elgin, and ceremonial headwear maker Robert Makri to collaborate on the looks. She also tapped the young British designer Samantha McCoach, whose line Le Kilt has helped reinvent the Scottish staple for a new generation.
However, it was the couture details applied to these stiffer and hardier fabrications that truly expressed Chiuri’s eye for the feminine. The lace and embroidery were intricate and delicate, laying gently on the body. Though the dresses may have taken the shape of medieval armor and restrictive corsetry, the finely applied mini-pearls and metallic threads to create sea fan coral and the cosmos made these tried-and-true fabrics and silhouettes softer and inherently more modern.
Even though summer is finally here, this show will have you pining for fall to roll around.
Dior Cruise 2025
