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Inflatable balloon dresses steal the show in London

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London, UK
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Sometimes conventional clothing feels just tooΒ normal.

Fashion often brings us left-field, wacky alternative options to keep things interesting, many of which end up the subjects of viral internet memes and popular YouTube videos. Each year we see some fresh outfits that have us questioning our sanity, shaking our definition of β€˜clothing’.

The beauty of bizarre fashion is in its blend of absurdity and self-awareness. Take this woman sporting an outfit that can only be described as a portable, make-shift bed, for example. SomebodyΒ hadΒ to know what the public response to this would be. Right…?

All questionable intentions aside, recently the world was lucky enough to be treated to a fresh new outfit that truly blends the line between inflatables and acceptable, wearable attire. If you’ve ever been to a theme park, watched a grown man make a dog out of stretchy balloons and thought β€˜this is what I should be wearing’, then this one’s for you.

Norwegian designer and winner of the L’OrΓ©al Professional Young Talent Award for 2019, Fredrik TjΓ¦randsen, has been causing a social media storm with his performative balloon garments that can inflate and deflate on demand. They were shown off during the Central Saint Martins BA fashion show in London last week, and are making the rounds on the usual social media feeds.

At long last I can fulfil my dream to be a human dinghy.

The pieces can be worn more than once and are referred to by Fredrik as β€˜bubbles’. He says he found his inspiration in β€˜early childhood memories’, and the rubbery designs themselves are intended to convey the abstract, misty nature of our perceptions of the past. β€˜I wanted to recreate the fogginess of memories themselves’, he explained during an interview with Vogue.

Frederik assured us that each runway model was comfortable in claustrophobic spaces and provided them all with three hours of oxygen inside any balloons that they wore. He’s since gained over 80’000 followers on hisΒ Instagram pageΒ and shows no real signs of slowing down. His numbers have inflated, if you will.

Despite my cynical mockery, these pieces are commendable for their uniqueness and visual impact. Immediately recognisable from any angle and wholly distinct from the competition, its no wonder that Frederick’s enjoying so much success.

The outfits are of course meant for performative, artistic expression and less for the shopping aisles, which is no bad thing. Diversity is crucial to creativity and I’m all for oddball, abstract clothing concepts. As long as I can make fun of them every so often.

Now who’s making the next balloon dress meme? I will if you won’t.

Editor In Chief London, UK

I’m Charlie (He/Him), the Editor In Chief at Thred. I studied English at the University of Birmingham and as a music and gaming enthusiast, I’m a nerd for pop culture. You can find me curating playlists, designing article headline images, and sipping cider on a Thursday. Follow me on Twitter, LinkedIn and drop me some ideas/feedback via email.

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