Dilara Findikoglu Spring 2026 Ready-to-Wear

One of my absolute favorites closed day four of London Fashion Week with a riotous scene of rockers and goths — including the granddaughter of the late punk queen herself, Vivienne Westwood, Cora Corrie. Dilara Findikoglu, a Turkish designer based in London, is known for darkly romantic, theatrical, and erotic couture that reimagines historical lingerie and gothic femininity as powerful armor.

Findikoglu is one of the rare designers who values corsetry as the heartbeat of her work. Her corsetry shows a masterful level of precision, honed in on the refinement of the garment since she graduated from Central Saint Martins in 2015. As a corset enthusiast myself, this obviously makes her one of my top 3 favorite designers.

Dilara Findikoglu, in an interview with Vogue, shared the inspiration behind her SS26 collection, Cage of Innocence:

“It’s about giving freedom to my ancestors and anyone who never had freedom. I feel like women have been kept in cages of innocence and purity, being told they have to be clean and represent virginity, all this kind of stuff, but we come out of this cage today.” 

She continued, revealing the personal resonance of the collection:

“Because I like feel this everyday, even though I look like the most confident person in the world, I actually am really emotional and insecure, and I feel the guilt that doesn’t belong to me,” she said. “So, it’s about also balancing toughness and softness all together. This collection is about giving voice to women that never actually have had it, and for me to heal from my ancestral burden. This collection is my, like, goodbye, accepting and sending love to them, and then probably [I’m] the first girl to be this free from my whole ancestral line.” 

The show is staged as an emotional journey told through the garments: first looks are bound, restricted, under traditional innocuous symbolism of white, cream and lace fabric. Gradually the looks that follow become more raw, more constricted with exposed corsetry, masks, and bondage. Finally there is the escape with leather and horse inspired motifs  — the becoming of something else.

The collection’s color palette begins with whites, creams, and ivories — shades traditionally associated with purity and innocence — but are gradually disrupted, marked with dirt, torn, stained, or layered with latex and metallic accessories. Corsetry remains at the heart of the designs, with undergarments layered beneath or over the structured pieces, sometimes deliberately torn or left to appear as if falling apart, revealing the inner architecture of the garment. The look is further heightened by the symbolic use of metal face jewelry, masks, and chains, adding a ritualistic, almost gothic edge that complements the tension between fragility and strength throughout the collection.

The cherries that stain a white corseted dress were among the most striking and symbolic motifs in the entire collection. What exactly do they represent? The loss of innocence? Mark of experience and desire? Shame imposed on women by societal standards? However we interpret them, it was a look that demanded attention, a climactic moment.

The show was an undeniable success. As one of the most sought-after events at London Fashion Week, Findikoglu is clearly poised for expansion on a global scale. The brand plans to launch handbags, expand its ready-to-wear, and ramp up both wholesale and direct-to-consumer operations.

https://www.vogue.com/fashion-shows/spring-2026-ready-to-wear/dilara-findikoglu

https://wwd.com/fashion-news/designer-luxury/dilara-findikoglu-business-cap-for-spring-2026