Pauline Dujancourt Spring/Summer 2027

For Spring/Summer 2027, Pauline Dujancourt explored independence, heartbreak and renewal while pushing her signature knitwear into new territory — and beginning to build a wardrobe designed for life beyond the runway.

Pauline Dujancourt has built her name around intricate knitwear, but for SS27 the London-based French designer was interested in what happens when a woman stops living in someone else’s shadow. The collection followed the emotional aftermath of losing love through seven stages, moving from despair towards relief, with each feeling given its own colour. Dark blues and oranges represented despair, pink intertwined with black and white expressed pain, while the final looks arrived in pure white. “Just be the best version of yourself, be independent, be you,” was Dujancourt’s message — a sentiment that gave the collection an emotional arc without losing sight of the clothes themselves.

There was plenty of the craftsmanship that has become synonymous with the designer, but SS27 also marked an expansion of her textile vocabulary. New lace fabrics appeared across draped floral-print skirts, while pleated, voluminous sleeves brought another dimension to the silhouettes. Bridalwear was introduced more prominently, reflecting growing demand for the category, with patterned satins, tightly worked lace and sheer fabrics culminating in a wedding gown finale. Its scale of handcraft was extraordinary: more than 700 handwoven alpaca loom flowers were pieced across organza and tulle, with the flowers taking more than two weeks to knit in Peru before the gown was assembled in London over a further 10 days.

That level of labour is part of what makes Dujancourt’s work so compelling, but it also presents a challenge as the business grows. Following her 2026 ANDAM Special Prize and entry into Dover Street Market Paris’ brand development programme, the designer is expanding her teams across Peru, France and the UK while developing a more commercially viable proposition. The ambition is not to abandon the handcraft, but to balance it with pieces that can be produced more efficiently and reach customers beyond the show.

And that may be the most significant shift in SS27. Dujancourt is moving from a designer known primarily for extraordinary knitwear and highly labour-intensive pieces towards a more complete fashion proposition. The bridal offering, new woven textiles and emphasis on production all suggest a label thinking about longevity as much as spectacle. If the collection's message was about stepping out of the shadows, Dujancourt herself appears to be doing something similar — taking the techniques that established her identity and giving them room to grow.