I was first introduced to Lili Curia in a boxing gym in North London at a reading event where Kate Nash was reading an excerpt from the anonymous writer Slutty Chef. Standing on the edge of the ring, I was in direct eye-line with Nash’s feet and spent much of the reading distracted by her lace-up ankle boots, which looked like they had survived the Victorian era in perfect condition and were now, thanks to a contemporary twist, ready for a night out in Dalston.
The boots, I was later informed, were made by Lili Curia, the London-based brand which has been gaining momentum since 2025 and is the product of founder Chili Palmer, a third-generation shoemaker from London. The brand has become a predictable feature in the wardrobes of celebrities like Keira Knightley, Little Simz, Suki Waterhouse, and Princess Julia. It also has uniquely strong ties to the London art world, with Tali Lennox being an early model for the brand.
Until now, the brand has been known for its gothic sensibility, which is why their upcoming capsule collection feels like a distinctly new trajectory. This May, Lili Curia are launching their Ribbon Knit collection. The collection builds on the brand’s signature tension between romance and practicality, introducing lighter, more fluid silhouettes shaped by open knits and delicate ribboned detailing. “It feels like a widening of our language,” says Palmer. “It still feels unmistakably Lili Curia, but introduces softness, craft, and materiality in a new way.”
The collection was shot in Cape Town, inside Die Es, the self-built home of architect Gawie Fagan and his wife Gwen Fagan. The name of the house, Die Es, translates to “the hearth” and sits between mountain and sea. It is flooded with light, which shifts throughout the day, suggesting an interior and exterior that are never quite fixed.
In the campaign, photographed by Johno Mellish, the models move through it without ceremony, reading, climbing ladders, and drifting between rooms. When asked why she had chosen this location, Palmer described Die Es as “a very special place. From the way it opens and shifts with the day, to the books, objects, and details collected over time, everything about it feels thoughtful, warm, and full of personality. There’s a softness to the way it moves between indoors and outdoors that feels very right for the collection.”
For this collection, Palmer has focused on reviving a feeling rather than a single historical design. She references old boat shoes, soft house slippers, and woven summer accessories as key inspirations, but adds that she was “more interested in capturing that feeling than directly reviving one historical design.” What Palmer wanted was to create pieces that felt easy and transitional for high summer: “I kept thinking about romantic summer details, crochet tablecloths, lace curtains, things that feel airy and charming, and found the perfect open knit. I’m also obsessed with Edwardian ribboned undergarments and loved borrowing that whimsical lacing detail for the collection.”
It’s a real departure from Lili Curia’s previous focus on tightly laced and structurally rigid designs; by contrast, the High Summer Ribbon Knit collection feels all about ease. Palmer notes that she envisions the collection “moving easily between settings, city streets, holidays, dinners, galleries, and slower moments in between. Romantic, but never precious.”
