For the Spring Summer 2025 season, 8ON8 introduces its “Sandboarding Express” collection at Paris Fashion Week, transporting us from the mundane to a secret desert realm. Inspired by the natural beauty and perils of Western China’s desert landscapes, this collection captures visions of prosperity and decline. Designer Li Gong sets a scene where ordinary reality meets dreamlike visions, telling the story of a city commuter who unexpectedly finds himself in an enchanting desert world.
The collection offers a surrealistic perspective, blending everyday elements with the history and culture of Western China. Through a series of images, settings, and objects—both real and imagined—Gong envisions a journey of sandboarding through the desert. The show unfolds like a journey over sand dunes, drawing inspiration from natural fibers. Rugged, coated cotton, crisp poplin, and ultra-thin, fluid wool come together to create dynamic texture contrasts, mirroring the beautiful yet perilous remote landscape of Western China.
Complex techniques and fabric treatments are paired with everyday casual wear. Cactus flowers are integrated into the garments through 3D knitting, prints, and embroidery, with their eyes turning into broderie anglaise-style air holes. Sparkling sequins on dark woolen suits mimic grains of sand or a starry night, while small drops of rain decorate wide poplin shirts. The collection combines retro elements with innovative techniques, achieving a classic plaid motif through a sheer fabric mille-feuille sewn together to create checks.
Various printing techniques influenced by traditional Western China textiles add unique effects to the collection. Hand-sprayed gradient effects and wave-like plaid in knitted pieces showcase the artisanal craftsmanship. Garment construction features a soft, drape-centric approach to structure. Throughout the collection, cross knots appear in various forms, including fabric stacking, combination prints, and three-dimensional effects, adding visual appeal and a humorous design language. Shirts drape shawl-like around the body, maintaining the brand’s signature suit tailoring with a couture-inspired collar design that delicately folds at the back of the neck.
Balancing functionality and fashion, the accessories in the “Sandboarding Express” collection range from lucky charm gourd-shaped bags, necklaces, and sunglasses to a compass and swimming cap-like headwear inspired by scarves worn by desert dwellers. Leather shoes feature cross knots and eye motifs, transforming them into fantastical creatures. Multi-material sneakers with asymmetrical lacing and draped details are designed in collaboration with Asics.
8ON8’s “Sandboarding Express” collection aims to create a breezier, more romantic life, filling the gaps of everyday busyness with dreamlike scenes that unfold beyond reality. This collection shapes a future yet to be imagined, inviting wearers to experience a sense of discovery and wonder. Take a closer look at the collection in the Gallery below:
seems like the designer didn’t have any time to design this …