Ann Demeulemeester Fora Macrame Embroidery Robe

A robe is a garment with almost nothing holding it up. There is no shoulder seam doing structural work, no closure deciding the silhouette, no waist. What is left is cloth, its weight, and how it falls, which means a robe either works entirely or does not work at all. This one works because the silk is heavy enough to hang rather than float, and because the macramé is worked into the ground rather than applied on top of it, so the surface has depth without gaining stiffness.

The fringe is the detail that gives it away in movement. Standing still it reads as a long patterned coat. Walking, the hem breaks and the fringe lags a half second behind the body, which is the whole argument for a garment cut this loosely. It is a piece that asks to be worn open over something plain, and it does not reward being belted.

We wanted one piece from this house that showed what it does when it stops tailoring. Most of what we carry from them is cut close and decided; this is the opposite instinct from the same hand, and having both in the store makes each easier to understand.

Ann Demeulemeester founded the house in 1985 and left it in 2013; Stefano Gallici has led the design since 2023. The romantic, undone register this robe sits in is the oldest thing about the label.

One hundred percent silk, made in Italy, in black and grey. The macramé embroidery is worked into the cloth and the edge is finished with fringe. One size.

Cut oversized and sold in one size, so the fit question is about proportion rather than measurement. It falls long and wide on most people, which is the intended line. Worn open over a slim base it reads as outerwear; closed, it reads as a dress and loses the drape that makes it interesting.

Over black, and over as little as possible. A slim trouser and a plain top underneath. The fringe and the embroidery are doing the work, so nothing else needs to.

Silk at this weight is a specialist garment rather than a home one, and the embroidery and the fringe are the parts a general cleaner will damage. Take it to someone who is told about both. Our care guidance covers silk in more detail.

If this is the one, look also at the Berly Dress and the Stee Ruffled Drawstring Top. The rest of what we carry from the house is on the Ann Demeulemeester page.