MILAN — After teasing a special project in fashion to WWD during the last fashion marathon in September, Lucy Hale will officially unveil the capsule collection she designed for Weekend Max Mara.
The American actress, known for starring in “Pretty Little Liars,” “The Hating Game” and “Puppy Love,” has been tapped by the Italian brand for a new chapter of its Signature Collection, bowing at Milan Fashion Week on Wednesday.
“I went on a trip to Paris last September in celebration of [the label’s] iconic Pasticcino Bag and got to know the wonderful team,” she said. “I’ve been a fan of the brand for a while because they capture fashion in a way that feels super elevated, but wearable. Their clothes capture a feeling and a personality. When they asked me to codesign my own capsule collection with them I obviously jumped at the idea because that’s truly a dream come true.”
Hale said the Weekend Max Mara team gave her “an open canvas to choose a theme” and she knew immediately she wanted to take the brand on an imaginative road trip into the wild.
“There really wasn’t any other direction I wanted to go with other than Western. I’m a country girl at heart and I escape to the desert outside L.A. whenever I can,” said the actress, who was born in Memphis, Tenn.
Her goal was to channel a free-spirited vibe that could match the laid-back codes of the brand and the feeling of “being out in nature, being confident in the woman that I am today, and this desire to go home, whether literally or home within oneself.”
Hence she dubbed the collection “JoyRoad,” as she pointed to “more joy!” as her personal motto these days.
The American Western aesthetic was best expressed via fringes galore, with these elements swishing from soft leather jackets, suede pants and even the Pasticcino Bag that Hale enriched with a braided decoration and tarnished metal clasps.
A preview of Lucy Hale’s capsule collection for Weekend Max Mara.
Courtesy of Weekend Max Mara
“The side fringe pants or the black fringe jacket are my top favorite pieces. They feel like they have already lived so many lives and have so much character,” said Hale, praising the brand’s expertise and craftsmanship in turning her ideas into clothing. “The varsity jacket in particular has so many beautiful fabrics in one piece,” she added about a patchwork style.
Outerwear options also include a gaucho-style bomber, field jackets, utility parkas, a Montgomery coat and a sturdy wool jacket with knitted sleeves. As for knitwear, it comes with colorful floral applications, whereas the overall palette hinges on muddy or tawny earth tones, olive green and light blue, reinforced by the presence of denim pants and miniskirts in faded washes or chiaroscuro effects.
To accessorize the unfussy pieces, Hale added cowboy boots, baseball caps and eye-catching bijou jewelry accented with a flower detail.
“Getting dressed each day is one of my favorite parts of expressing my personality. My hope is that people find this collection lively and empowering,” said Hale, who has a penchant for vintage shopping and “clothes with a history.”
“I like pieces you can revisit year after year and ones you can pass down to friends or family. These days I have fewer items, but ones you can mix and match,” she said, underscoring that her aim with the collection was to encourage people to try different outfit combinations and have fun with their clothes. She took this approach with her trendy press tour wardrobe for “Which Brings Me to You,” her new romantic comedy costarring Nat Wolff that was released last month.
Hale is the latest talent in a long string of Weekend Max Mara’s collaborators. The brand has previously tapped the likes of designer Arthur Arbesser; British stylist Kate Phelan; Lily Aldridge; architect and designer Patricia Urquiola; New York-based stylist and editor Gabriella Karefa-Johnson; top model Alek Wek; American illustrator and pop artist Donald Robertson; Lucinda Chambers, former fashion director of British Vogue; Oscar-winning costume designer Gabriella Pescucci; American interior designer Anthony Baratta, and American artist Richard Saja.
Launched in 1983 as a casual outdoors weekend collection, the brand is part of the Max Mara Fashion Group’s portfolio and is available in about 250 monobrand stores and department stores globally.