August Barron are riding the momentum of their recent success. After a standout year as LVMH Prize finalists, a name change from All-In to August Barron, and the release of their SS26 photobook Real Housewife, the brand returns with a jovial collection that celebrates the thrill of letting go.
For FW26, the duo turn to Alice in Wonderland as their creative springboard. The collection, aptly titled Bedtime Story, channels the tale’s gleeful chaos and whimsy into a world of teenage abandon and swirling surrealism. Crafting a lookbook that recalls the dreamlike glamour of ’50s Disney princess dressing, designers Benjamin Barron and Bror August Vestbø seize every ounce of pink confetti within reach, building an unruly, nostalgic set to accompany the same-spirited looks.
Building on the narrative of Real Housewife, which examined the hyper-perfectionism of a 1950s suburban protagonist, this season feels like its natural sequel. These are the imagined daughters of that world—if they were running late to their prom in the ’70s because they fell down a rabbit hole.
Last season’s triple-ball gowns reappear as voluminous skirts for autumn, styled with slightly oversized polo shirts draped in off-kilter folds that capture that uneasy adolescent moment of navigating your childhood wardrobe with a maturing mind.
Sweaters in powder pink and soft blue are cinched at the waist with satin bows, while track jackets arrive double-layered and paired with oversized ribbons blooming into full skirts. Football T-shirts and tuxedos are cut with strong, sculpted shoulders, contrasted by confetti-like embroidery that melts into the theatrical, pastel-strewn set designed by Beatrice Bonino.
’50s pumps and ballerinas return, layered once again with bows. The brand’s signature Level boot reemerges in soft nappa leather, joined by the beloved Bette bag—first seen in Real Housewife—now gleaming in gold sequins.
In the lookbook’s accompanying video, the collection’s protagonist continuously falls down a rabbit hole in a swirl of plush toys, curling irons, pearls, and confetti. The short film and images capture the collection’s full-hearted spirit—and the sweet rapture of letting go.
