Gigi Hadid goes back to school with the Varsity Funk collection.
Gigi Hadid goes back to school with the Varsity Funk collection.
Today, October 26th, Gigi Hadid released her latest capsule collection for Guest in Residence called Varsity Funk. The second limited-edition drop for her knitwear brand was inspired by school community and aesthetics… but made funky.
School is a crucial rite of passage for young people and one of the first places to learn about collective identity. Hadid was particularly inspired by school spirit – pride, enthusiasm, and collective desire to achieve school success to create a sense of spirit and community in the collection.
Each school has its own traditions and personality, and Hadid wanted to embrace new ideas when designing her Varsity collection. Taking conventional school items, like varsity jackets, rugby shirts, and basketball shorts, and renewing them with unique designs, like hand-crochet details resembling football laces and floating knit techniques to add dimension.
Each piece in the collection is densely knitted to create the perfect draping for anyone while maintaining structural integrity. Hadid also played with traditional school colors, creating new color combinations using colors like sky, kiwi, mandarin, and sunflower to achieve what she affectionately called “varsity funk.” Ultimately bringing classic schoolyard imagery and clothes into a funky modern era.
This capsule collection is the latest in her series of drops that are all theme-driven collections exploring more nuanced designs, compositions, and aesthetics. Each of them is only produced in specially created small quantities and available for a short window.
Guest in Residence is Hadid’s way of paying homage to those who taught her throughout her career, which has led to over 30 Vogue covers worldwide, design collaborations with places like Tommy Hilfiger and Reebok, and editorials with us at V Magazine and i-D Magazine. Ultimately hoping the brand helps pave the way for the next generation of creatives, all while pioneering a modernized take on heritage and classic designs.
Credits: Photos courtesy of Gigi Hadid and Guest in Residence.
