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This week, London-based footwear brand Lili Curia unveiled its high summer collection for 2026. A campaign by Sammy King titled ‘Everyday Scenes’ showcases a transgressive collection inspired by classic vintage and Victorian shoes, playfully remastered for a contemporary summer wardrobe. The designs are experimental, imbued with the brand’s mischievous blend of femininity and hard-edged witchiness and each conceptualised with a different character in mind.
Launching in the latter half of last year, Lili Curia has already become a favourite amongst London’s most stylish circles, regularly spotted on a plethora of creatives and artists that include Little Simz, Keira Knightly and CLASH cover star Suki Waterhouse. “There isn’t just one Lili Curia girl”, Chili Palmer, the label’s founder explains. “She changes depending on the day… she can be theatrical, witchy, rebellious.”
“Every design starts with something found – an object, a reference, a detail”, Palmer said when the brand launched last year; and this season is no different. High summer references old dance shoes, 70s clogs and Victorian pieces for a collection rooted in the performance of the self. For Palmer, each shoe has its own character, this season partly inspired by the women of Pedro Almodóvar’s films, “[they are] very strong, very emotional, very expressive” she tells us.
The High Summer campaign centres this premise, building around multiple characters acting out the “theatre of everyday life.” Photographer and director Sammy King sets three almost mundane scenarios: a baby shower, a library and a poolside setting. Each woman enters the scene foot first, taking centre stage in a disruptive manner. “She stands out, shifts the atmosphere, steals the scene” Palmer says. A cinematic photo series, also lensed by King, spotlights the Lili Curia women on-stage before a blue velvet curtain. Moving with a cheeky, unabashed freedom, they take on different alter egos to suit each shoe.
Each is theatrical in nature: the Dita stands out as an ultra feminine, ultra sexy character with a high heel and delicate ankle strap; the Astrid is witchy and powerful with its sharp pointed toe and slanted kitten heel; and the Petra bold and cinematic with a structural platform base.
To celebrate the launch, CLASH caught up with Chili Palmer to dissect the creative process behind Lili Curia high summer. The designer delves into the influences and intentionality behind the brand that continues to shape a legacy around curation, careful design and expert craftsmanship.
CLASH: Who is the Lili Curia girl?
Chili Palmer: There isn’t just one Lili Curia girl. She changes depending on the day — different moods, different versions of herself. She treats everyday life like a stage. She can be theatrical, witchy, rebellious.
What do you want people to feel when they wear a Lili Curia shoe?
Like a slightly more expressive version of themselves, like they’ve stepped into a character or a mood.
I like the idea that a shoe can change how you walk into a room, how you stand, how you move — that even everyday moments can feel a bit more like a scene.
You’ve worked with Sammy King a few times now, what’s that working relationship like?
I always wanted to work with a photographer who was also a director, and Sammy brought our first campaign to life when we launched AW25. She feels very much like a Lili Curia girl herself — she’s a real character with an amazing wardrobe and has lent clothes and props from her own home for shoots, so she really gets involved in the creative process.
For the first campaign she helped us build a whole world and introduce people to the brand. For SS26 we approached things in a more stripped back way. We wanted to introduce the shoes more like a cast of characters and really focus in on them, but still with her same cinematic touch.
What’s the meaning behind the three settings: poolside, a baby shower, and the library?
They’re all very everyday, quite polite environments. We liked the idea that when the Lili Curia woman enters these spaces, she slightly disrupts them. She stands out, shifts the atmosphere, steals the scene a little bit just by being there.
The campaign is really about the theatre of everyday life, turning familiar places into small stages.
You once said every design starts with something found — what were some inspirations behind this collection?
The references started quite traditionally — Victorian shoes, old dance shoes, 70s clogs, classic boat shoes, and then we distilled those ideas into a summer wardrobe of shoes for different occasions.
I’m always interested in taking something quite classic and giving it a bit more personality, so it feels familiar but still very much its own character.
Are there any fictional characters who embody Lili Curia High Summer?
I always think of the shoes as a cast of characters. Different moods, different alter egos, different occasions.
I love the women in Almodóvar films — very strong, very emotional, very expressive — and I think there’s a bit of that spirit in Lili Curia.
What does your creative process look like?
It usually starts with collecting — images, objects, fabrics, vintage shoes — and then we think quite practically about what a woman’s wardrobe needs for a season.
Then it becomes a balance between something playful and something practical. We want the shoes to have personality, but also to be shoes you can really live in.
Craft is central to Lili Curia and present aesthetically in every design — can you tell us a bit about your perspective on craft and slower design processes?
I’m the third generation of shoemakers in my family, so craft has always been part of how I think about shoes. We work very closely with our factories and take our time with development because the materials and construction really matter.
We spend a lot of time on fit and proportion, because those small details make a big difference. For us, how a shoe fits and feels is just as important as how it looks.
Which High Summer shoe is the most theatrical to you?
Probably the Astrid or the Petra. The Astrid has that pointed toe and kitten heel that feels quite witchy and powerful, and the Petra wooden platform is so sculptural — it changes how you move, how you enter a room, how you hold yourself.
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