Unilever’s Magnum brand has collaborated with luxury Dutch avant-garde fashion visionary Iris Van Herpen to design a Haute Couture vegan dress inspired by its non-dairy, vegan ice cream assortment. The creation was unveiled on the runway by model Cindy Bruna (as seen above) at Elysée Montmartre on July 4 during Paris Fashion Week.
The dress is a celebration of Magnum ice cream’s plant-based vegan product range. It was created using an intricate 3-dimensional design, incorporating sustainable materials that reference Magnum ice cream’s vegan ingredients in an indulgent fusion between the brand’s iconic melting chocolate and Van Herpen’s luxurious fluid designs. With the aid of 3-D printing technology, the dress is also the first haute couture dress to be made from cocoa bean husks, which have been processed to create a fully organic biopolymer material.
The garment features intricate details including plantlike body embellishments which are copper-coated, draped and entwined with upcycled and pliseed organza, while other 3-D elements have been printed using innovative SLS technology (Selective Laser Sintering).
Speaking about the collaboration, Van Herpen remarked: “I am honored to have been approached by Magnum ice cream as a partner to bring to life the Magnum Vegan Dress. As a designer, I have always worked to push the boundaries of design and this collaboration has really allowed us to take this one step further by linking the ingredients of an iconic Magnum Vegan to create a haute couture design. The opportunity to work with the brand on such an innovation in sustainable fashion has been a very special experience.”
Bruna added: “What an honor to be able to reveal the Magnum Vegan Dress to the world – and to be able to do this at Iris’ 15th anniversary show just makes this even more special. Bringing together ice cream and haute couture in such an unexpected and impactful way is so exciting, making this a partnership that I am delighted to be a part of.”
The dress is part of Van Herpen’s “Meta Morphism” fashion collection, which explores society’s embrace and acceptance of a new world of digitalism. Inspired by Ovid’s canonical poem “Metamorphoses,” the designer breaks down the lines between reality and digital realms in a futuristic, avant-garde collection created to inspire and evoke the question of who we are beyond a perceived reality.
While pondering the philosophical meaning of life, the Magnum marketing team reminds its customers not to miss out on what the present offers. A press release issued by the company states, in part: “We believe a day without indulgence is a day lost, and that everyone should be able to pursue what brings them joy, whatever this may be. This campaign brings together Magnum ice cream fans from across the world to indulge in the decadence of plant-based deliciousness and invites them to experience and celebrate Magnum Vegan through an all-new fusion of cocoa and haute couture.”
