Victoria Beckham: Grey Gardens and glamorous imperfection

By

Godfrey Deeny

Published
Mar 4, 2023

Glamorous imperfection – from horsehair shoes to interior suit lining on the outside – in a quirkily chic collection inspired by Grey Gardens at Victoria Beckham, with Eva Longoria and Brazilian soccer great Ronaldo in the front row.

A celebratory mood at the show inside the cloisters of Val-de-Grâce, and a great example of Entente Cordiale, exuberant English designer talent, savvy French luxury management. This week, the house’s key outside investor Neo Capital’s David Belhassen revealed that Victoria Beckham’s business became profitable in 2022 after a half-dozen years of losses.
 
In Friday’s show, Beckham also courageously broke new ground. With almost infinitely long silk bias cut dresses, featuring all manner of circular cut outs and swirls, all of them seductively chic. Some even completed with padded shoulders.

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Adding to the cool eccentricity, she also attached scraps of fake hair to gowns, cocktails and even a series of new shoes. They swished like pony tails as the models toured the medieval stone runway.
 
“I think we all like to dress up. I did as a child, which is what fascinated me about Grey Gardens,” said Beckham, referring to the 1975 documentary about the disheveled Long Island home of Jackie Kennedy’s cousins Edith and Little Edie Bouvier Beale, and the power of clothes to create fantasy worlds.
 
Her invitation was of Drew Barrymore, dressed batty Bouvier style, who played the part of Edie in the 2009 HBO film based on the documentary, and also called Grey Gardens.
 
“Drew is a very good friend. And a working mum like me. She is actually making a movie right now,” noted Victoria.
 
Power-dressing tailoring, with strong shoulders and a forgiving silhouette, the imperfections visible in the horsehair padding used as a single lapel, or hidden construction placed outside. Fashionable faults also apparent a beige trench, cut with pink lining sleeves and the regular sleeve left dangling.
 
Best of all, some sensationally well-cut pants with reverse pleats, the same worn by Victoria in a pre-show breakfast briefing; anchored by her latest hooked heel platform shoe.
 

“I wore these dashing to catch the Eurostar. And I made it in these shoes. I like to try on everything I design, just to make sure it’s real. And I have kept these pants on for three days,” laughed the genially self-deprecating designer. 
 
Buckle bags in three different sizes, the smallest as a clutch, through which the models pushed their hands, the largest held under the arm. 
 
Beckham is not the first designer to be inspired by Grey Gardens, and won’t be the last. But few will have culled as much magic from the documentary as the English designer.
 
Mixing up materials – plissé silk, satin, leather and feathers – to develop a beautiful opening trio of gowns. While Victoria’s shapely cut blazers were paired the long faux-crocodile thigh boots in fashion history. When Beckham held them up at the morning preview they were almost as high as she is, but they worked like perfection on model Adut Akech.
 
Post-show, guests feted les Beckhams, gathering to drink haute gamme guava tequila in a medieval hall, while David Beckham generously posed for photos with his former Real Madrid teammate and fellow soccer great Ronaldo.

Aided by booming beauty sales, streamlined management and greater digital competence, the house scored a modest 2022 EBITA after several years of gradually reducing losses. Expect revenue and profits to flourish. The future looks very good for the house of Victoria Beckham.