Christian Siriano is trying to make sleep glamorous through a partnership with sleep-aid brand Unisom.
Last week, while busy gearing up for the Met Gala, WWD caught up with the designer to talk sleep and how he’s prepping for fashion’s biggest night of the year.
The sleep deal is fitting — this year, the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute’s spring exhibit is titled “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion.”
To commemorate the event and his latest brand ambassadorship, Siriano dressed models in his creations new and old, and photographed them “sleeping” at iconic New York City landmarks, like St. Patrick’s Cathedral and Rockefeller Plaza.
Christian Siriano prepares for a photo shoot.
Courtesy
Here, the designer shares more on the partnership, the shoot, his Met Gala trend predictions and more. This interview has been edited and condensed.
WWD: Sleep has been trending across wellness and now it’s permeating fashion and beauty. Why is it such a hot topic?
Christian Siriano: It’s an untouched category in a way, not just for obviously fashion because there’s so many items that you can focus on for your best sleep. We’re all losing our minds a little bit. We have to have a little focus on what makes us centered and where we can take a break from the world. There’s enough going on in our world.
WWD: How did you get involved with Unisom?
C.S.: The timing is perfect right now, and I felt like it was a really interesting conversation that we’re having in our world: this idea of the importance of sleep and how for me as a fashion designer [I] can get that out to the world with a little bit of beauty and a little bit of glamour, but also get that message across that hopefully, people are taking care of themselves in that way.
WWD: How did you develop the concept of models “falling asleep” at New York landmarks?
C.S.: I love this idea of sleeping beauties and these beautiful people, of all shapes, sizes, walks of life. The idea for us was to get to showcase like, “OK, imagine all these amazing people running around the city,” but how would you get your sleep and how would you look or dress in my fantasy world? I want it to be as glamorous and gorgeous and beautiful as possible, but also to remember, we want to highlight what the great team at Unisom is doing, and still that idea of the importance of sleep and making sure that people in fashion are actually taking care of themselves and resting and all over the world really.
WWD: What landmarks did you decide to shoot at?
C.S.: We’re going everywhere. I want it to feel very iconic New York. That will feel really beautiful. Obviously, fashion’s biggest night is such a moment. All of New York City shuts down for it. This was a way to make it a bit more about New York and the beauty of it.
Model wearing Christian Siriano.
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WWD: What looks are the models wearing?
C.S.: We’re doing about 20 looks and it’s looks from all of my archives. It was really cool to dig into the past of pieces that I’ve made over my last 10-, 15-year career. Then [I] made a really special signature dress that was inspired by Unisom and this idea of a sleeping beauty.
I really dug in the archives because we wanted to keep this almost monochromatic theme of beautiful midnight blues and things that feel soothing. It was kind of cool to see like, “When did I make these beautiful pieces in these beautiful blue tones?” It’s fun to dig those up and they still look great. Let me tell you! They hold up. They hold up over time, and the fact that I have them is even crazier.
WWD: What does your nighttime routine look like?
C.S.: I work crazy hard during the day, so sleep is very important to me. I have to sleep or I won’t function. I really do kind of shut off from the world. We don’t have TV in our bedroom. I shop for furniture a lot. That actually really makes me zen. I do probably two or three sketches every night before bed. I don’t want to forget an idea before I go to sleep because then I think about it all night. It’s something I’ve done for my whole life. Sometimes they come to life and sometimes they don’t.
WWD: Are you ever surprised by your sketches in the morning?
C.S.: It’s funny, actually, never.
WWD: What are your Met Gala trend predictions for this year?
C.S.: People obviously will take this idea of a garden in time and the things that are floral and botanical. They’re definitely gonna go there. I’ve done appliqué flower dresses my last two or three Mets, so I was already ahead. I already kind of did that. I felt for this, one of the looks I’m doing, I wanted it to be quite dark. It’s ethereal and beautiful, but it is dark and romantic in that way. It’s not so specific of flowers. It’s a little bit more abstract.
Christian Siriano prepares for a photo shoot.
Courtesy
