For the designer, the collaboration was an opportunity to push the boundaries of his signature aesthetic. “You had all of these amazing references, and what I really loved was that Giulia respected the brand,” he explains. “You were really into the neckline and having this couture swoop that we’ve become known for doing, and then you pushed us to our limits with the drama and elegance and the craftsmanship.”
The end result is three looks in one. There’s an extraordinarily long veil, a dramatic bohemian cape jacket with lace bell sleeves, and Harris’s interpretation of a sweetheart neckline, reimagined in liquid silk. “Conor loves it whenever I wear lace,” Giulia says, with a smile. “I’ll leave it at that! He for sure is going to be very excited. I’ve also never seen him cry and we’ve been together for almost five years, so I think my only chance is the element of surprise. If he doesn’t cry, I’m going to be like, ‘We’re doing this again! Let’s restart the wedding march.’”
The collaboration with Harris began with a DM on Instagram. “I was getting on a plane, and you texted me on Instagram and were like, ‘Let’s do my wedding,’ and I was like, ‘Let’s do it,’” Harris recalls. From there, the two began discussing everything from fabrics and silhouettes to how Giulia wanted to feel on her wedding day. “It’s just having a very organic, real conversation, which sounds really basic but no one does that anymore.”
Once the cape jacket has been removed, Giulia FaceTimes her mother to show her the dress. The call includes with plenty of “oohs” and “aahs.” “We’re going to kill it,” she says. “They’re going to be like ‘Wow! Stunning, stunning, stunning!’”
Ultimately, Giulia wasn’t interested in playing it safe. “I wanted drama,” she says. “At the end of the day, of course, I am classic in a lot of ways, but there’s also a side of me that’s very maximalist. That loves a moment, and that loves drama.”