Modern Romantic Style Guide
Simone Rocha + Monica Vitti
Pearl-trim tulle and a black knit dress — romance built like sculpture, not like froth.
Modern Romantic is Simone Rocha S/S 2015 and Monica Vitti in Antonioni's L'Avventura (1960).
- A pearl-trimmed cream tulle dress — Simone Rocha S/S 2015 register
- A slim black wool knit dress with a high crew neck — Vitti in L'Avventura
- A cream cropped wool coat with a rounded shoulder
- A low cream leather pump under 50mm
- A single oversized cream-silk bow at the collar or hair
- Princess-sleeve volume — the silhouette stays sculptural, not bridal
- Sequin or glitter — the matte register is the entire reading
- Wide-leg tulle — knee-length or midi only
- Stacked pearls — one long strand, no second necklace
What is Modern Romantic style?
Modern Romantic names the cross-section between London-Irish designer Simone Rocha's sculptural pearl-and-tulle silhouettes and Italian actor Monica Vitti's cool mid-century knit-dress register from Michelangelo Antonioni's early-1960s trilogy — L'Avventura (1960), La Notte (1961), and L'Eclisse (1962). Rocha opened her own label in 2010 and her S/S 2015 London Fashion Week collection — the breakthrough pearl-trim tulle frame — fixed the contemporary Rocha grammar; the Simone Rocha x H&M collaboration (March 2021) carried it into a mass register. Vitti wore Antonioni's color-blocked, structured costumes through the early-1960s trilogy and remained the visual canon of mid-century Italian cinema heroine dressing through her death in 2022. The archetype is romance built like sculpture rather than romance built like froth — a pearl-trimmed cream tulle dress reads as architectural ornament, not as bridal volume; a slim black knit dress with a high crew neck reads as sculptural restraint, not as little-black-dress shorthand. Cathy Horyn's New York Times coverage of Rocha across her career and Manny Farber's writing on Antonioni for The New Republic and Film Culture sit alongside the runway and film archives as canonical references. Contemporary maintainers in 2026: Simone Rocha mainline, Cecilie Bahnsen, Erdem at his quieter register, and vintage Italian knitwear from the 1960s.
Modern Romantic is a 65-year-spanning cross-section. Monica Vitti wore Michelangelo Antonioni's color-blocked, structured costumes through the early-1960s trilogy — L'Avventura (1960), La Notte (1961), L'Eclisse (1962) — and fixed the mid-century Italian cinema heroine register in cultural memory. Simone Rocha opened her own label in 2010, and her S/S 2015 London Fashion Week collection (the pearl-trim tulle breakthrough) fixed the contemporary Rocha grammar; the Simone Rocha x H&M collaboration (March 2021) carried it into a mass register. Cathy Horyn's New York Times coverage of Rocha across her career, Sarah Mower's Vogue Runway reviews, and Manny Farber's writing on Antonioni for Film Culture sit as the critical record. The look refuses two things contemporary bridal photography tried to fold into the Rocha silhouette: princess-sleeve volume and sequin trim. Cecilie Bahnsen and Erdem at his quieter register supply the contemporary cuts; vintage 1960s Italian knitwear delivers the Vitti reading.
Romance built like sculpture, not like froth. The tulle holds an edge; the knit holds a line; the pearl trim reads as architectural ornament.
Signature palette
The capsule
- Pearl-trimmed cream tulle dress — Simone Rocha S/S 2015 is the canonical reference; the Simone Rocha x H&M collaboration (March 2021) delivered the mass register version. Heavy tulle, pearl trim at the neckline or hem, knee-length or midi. The dress goes alone for evening; under the cream cropped wool coat in cooler weather. Skip polyester tulle and skip princess-sleeve volume.
- Slim black wool knit dress with a high crew neck — Monica Vitti in Antonioni's L'Avventura (1960) frame — fine merino or cashmere knit, slim through the body, hem at the knee, high crew neckline. Vintage Italian knitwear from the 1960s delivers the source; The Row or Khaite's heavier knits deliver the contemporary parallel. Skip cropped hems and skip cowl necks.
- Cream cropped wool coat with a rounded shoulder — Goes over the tulle dress or the knit dress; rounded-shoulder cut, hem at the high hip, single button. Cecilie Bahnsen or Toteme deliver. The coat is the outerwear across every season except deep winter (when the longer wool coat from Quiet Sculptor cross-applies). Skip notched lapels and skip any padded shoulder above 5mm.
- Low cream leather pump under 50mm — Calf leather, almond toe, low heel under 50mm. The Row's 'Coco' or Mansur Gavriel's elegant low pump. Worn under the tulle dress or with the knit dress. Skip pointed-toe pumps (Noir Editor territory) and skip any heel above 50mm.
- Single oversized cream-silk bow at the collar or hair — Heavy silk satin or organza, single bow above 6cm wide, worn at the collar of the knit dress or tied at the back of the head. Simone Rocha's hair bows from her S/S 2018 and S/S 2020 collections are the reference. Skip clip-on plastic bows and skip layering multiple bows.
- One long strand of pearls — Cultured pearls, 8mm beads, knotted on silk, length to the sternum or longer. One strand, never two. Mikimoto delivers the source; Sophie Bille Brahe and Aurate deliver the contemporary parallels. Skip baroque pearls (wrong register) and skip any chain layered over the strand.
- Slim black wool trouser at the ankle — Cigarette cut, heavy wool gabardine, hem hitting the ankle bone. The trouser is the alternate-day pairing when the knit dress feels too cinematic; goes with a slim knit top in cream or blush. The Row or Khaite both deliver. Skip wide-leg cuts and skip any pleat detail.
What to avoid
- Princess-sleeve volume — sculptural silhouette only
- Sequin trim or glitter — matte register across every surface
- Plastic pearl trim — real or high-quality cultured pearls only
- Polyester tulle — silk tulle only, the edge holds
- Two pearl strands — one long strand, never layered
Frequently asked questions
Modern Romantic is the cross-section between Simone Rocha's S/S 2015 London Fashion Week collection (the pearl-trim tulle breakthrough) and Monica Vitti's mid-century Italian cinema heroine register in Michelangelo Antonioni's early-1960s trilogy — L'Avventura (1960), La Notte (1961), and L'Eclisse (1962). The capsule: pearl-trimmed cream tulle dress, slim black wool knit dress with high crew neck, cream cropped wool coat with rounded shoulder, low cream leather pump, single oversized cream-silk bow, one long strand of pearls.
Both archetypes hold romance as the load-bearing register, but the silhouettes diverge. Slip Romantic is Kate Moss in Mario Sorrenti's 1993 Calvin Klein Obsession campaign and Sofia Coppola's The Virgin Suicides — bias-cut silk slip dresses, cropped cardigans, pointed flat slingbacks. Modern Romantic is the sculptural register: Simone Rocha's pearl-trim tulle and Monica Vitti's structured black knit. Slip Romantic reads soft and 1990s; Modern Romantic reads sculptural and runs across two periods.
Simone Rocha mainline for the pearl-trim tulle dress and the oversized bow; Cecilie Bahnsen for the cropped cream wool coat and additional tulle pieces; Erdem at his quieter register for the structured romance; The Row and Khaite for the slim black knit dress and slim trouser; Mansur Gavriel for the low cream leather pump; Mikimoto or Sophie Bille Brahe for the single pearl strand. Vintage 1960s Italian knitwear delivers the Vitti reading; the March 2021 Simone Rocha x H&M collaboration delivers the mass-register Rocha source.
Yes — the knit dress and the slim trouser registers carry the everyday form. The slim black wool knit dress with the cream low pump and the single long strand of pearls reads as the daily city register; the cream cropped wool coat goes over. The tulle dress and the oversized bow are reserved for evening or event. The reading holds across any setting; only the tulle pulls back to the closet between events.
Simone Rocha S/S 2015 London Fashion Week runway photography (the pearl-trim tulle breakthrough). The Simone Rocha x H&M campaign photography from March 2021. Monica Vitti in stills from Michelangelo Antonioni's L'Avventura (1960), La Notte (1961), and L'Eclisse (1962). Cathy Horyn's New York Times coverage of Rocha across her career. Sarah Mower's Vogue Runway reviews of Rocha runways.
