Dreaming Eli

Hello! I am good, but very busy! I’m speaking to you from my London studio.

Dreaming Eli is deeply rooted in my Sicilian heritage, in its mythology, its passionate temperament, and its contrasts. Sicily has taught me that beauty often hides in contradiction, in the raw, untamed, and nostalgic charm of the island. I think of the broken walls of ancient baroque buildings and the decadent beauty of a place. Many of my collections borrow from the island’s myths and stories, reimagining them into garments that celebrate the complexity of womanhood.

I translate these contradictions through tension in texture and form: fragile lace against structured corsetry and raw, distressed fabrics against precise tailoring. The pieces are layered and fragmented, reflecting the complexity of womanhood. Our signature corsetry is designed to empower the wearer to make them feel beautiful and strong.

Every collection is a chapter in my own evolution. Having grown up in an environment where women’s roles were often confined, I channel those experiences into designs that reclaim power. The Dreaming Eli woman evolves with me; she is never static. Through each season, I explore how vulnerability can transform into strength.

That recognition was a huge confidence boost. It gave me the belief that my vision resonated beyond myself, that my stories could connect with women everywhere. It set the foundation for Dreaming Eli.

It was a turning point. Although I was always going to start my brand, getting the digital slot so soon after graduating showed me it was the right time for Dreaming Eli. It was surreal. Showing my work on that stage was both terrifying and exhilarating. I learnt that vulnerability is a strength; the more personal and raw my work felt, the more it connected with people.

It was the hardest but also the best. I feel relieved, tired, and proud all at once. Presenting My Name Is Amore at London Fashion Week felt like being in a special place, sharing a part of myself. The church venue, the silence between each look, all made the show feel personal and meaningful. This collection marks a real turning point for me, both creatively and emotionally. After past seasons shaped by trauma, rebellion, and survival, this one was about surrender. The Dreaming Eli woman doesn’t fight to survive anymore. She chooses, she gives, and she loves with her eyes open, with full awareness of her power. Seeing that woman walk down the runway, embodied by each model, and knowing that people truly felt her—that was the real magic.

The starting point was love. Not the romanticised version, but the kind that comes after the healing. After the heartbreak, after the lessons. The kind of love that’s rooted in self-awareness, in power, in choice. A woman who knows exactly what she wants. She aims. She shoots. Not out of desperation, but out of clarity. The collection is also full of symbolic rituals—wax, ashes, ribbons, gestures of spirituality—evoking themes of rebirth, ancestral love and karmic closure. Neruda’s poem lingered the entire time. That sense of being so close to someone, you lose the line between your body and theirs. That’s the kind of love I wanted to express. My Name Is Amore is a declaration of self-love, of knowing and of surrender without losing yourself. She has loved herself so much in the past seasons that now she knows the type of love she deserves and demands. And when she gets it, she’s ready to surrender to it, body and soul. 

The sculpted red vinyl biker matching trousers and bra set is the look that holds everything this collection stands for. It’s harsher than the others, with frayed edges and a sharp, structured silhouette that feels decadent and dangerous, but there’s still fragility in it. That contrast is the heart of the collection for me. The tension between power and softness. It’s unapologetic, a little disruptive, but still deeply Dreaming Eli. It reflects the evolution of the brand, not just aesthetically, but emotionally. I was exploring new fabrics and new constructions, pushing the boundaries of what femininity can look and feel like. This look holds all of that. It’s an embodiment of My Name Is Amore.

I love starting from concepts that have always been used by society to control the minds and bodies of women throughout history. From here, the Victorian corsetry is owned by the woman wearing it and deconstructed to become instead a powerful way of expressing her own sexual freedom from a totally female gaze point of view. On the other side, the ballerinas of Degas—back then considered the prostitutes of society, there to satisfy the male gaze—become powerful creatures. Their delicacy is their strength. All of this is mixed with small sporty and street-style details and silhouettes to make it contemporary and relevant.

The movement of the female body is an essential part of my artistic expression as well as inspiration for my work. During my master's at CSM (lockdown), I loved filming myself moving with and against fabrics. The relation and opposition between ballet and pole dance fascinated me: how ballet was once related to sex but today portrays the delicate and almost pure side of femininity, and on the other hand, how pole dance is more contemporarily associated with sex, how hard it is, and yet how effortless the performer makes it look. Playing with these opposite concepts and mixing them together, I wanted to show both ballet and pole performances to create something extremely powerful, sexy, creepy, and delicate.

There is always a thread of duality, softness and defiance, vulnerability and power. I have grown more fearless with each collection, pushing the boundaries of fabric manipulation and silhouette. Season after season, I have learnt to be more blunt conceptually, becoming increasingly unfiltered and real in my approach. I am constantly trying to introduce new design methods, fabrics, techniques, and pieces into my collections. This can be seen most recently with the introduction of knitwear and an accessories line created in collaboration with Harry Mack, an amazing 3D designer.

Each collection is a representation of an experience of the world I’ve had as a woman. The show makes me feel exposed and seen at the same time, and it’s also a form of closure. That experience, that feeling, is now out in the world where others can relate to it or make it their own. Just as some people need to say things out loud to process them, I need to create a collection and show the worlds behind it.

Sophie and I connected over a shared desire to merge art and fashion. The live-painted dress was born from that connection. I draped it the night before, and she brought it to life with her brush in real time. It became a love letter to women, to self-belief, and to the power of female collaboration. Working with Sophie reminded me how rare it is to meet someone both deeply talented and genuinely kind, and I’m grateful for the support and inspiration she has given me.

By treating them as two sides of the same coin. Delicate fabrics speak to intimacy and openness, while strategic exposure and strong structure bring an undeniable sense of power. I want my pieces to remind women that their softness can be their greatest strength.

We produce in small quantities, and everything is made to measure. Every piece is handcrafted in our London studio, with subtle variations that make it one of a kind. We upcycle vintage clothing and create new textiles from scraps, reducing waste while adding unique character to each design. Our pieces incorporate adjustable elements, allowing for a more versatile fit so they can be worn for a lifetime. We also offer lifetime repairs and rental options.

I want anyone who wears Dreaming Eli to feel entranced. The pieces are about emotional expression and sexual freedom, encouraging the wearer to feel empowered, unfiltered, and free to inhabit whatever version of themselves feels most true in that moment. It’s about breaking away from expectation and embracing your own narrative.

It’s always exciting to see artists with such strong personal styles and aesthetics make Dreaming Eli their own. They push us out of our comfort zone, encouraging us to mix our signature elements of Dreaming Eli with new and unexpected ideas. That exchange is inspiring; it challenges us and expands our creative vision.

It is a mix. Some come with a clear vision; others trust me to create something from scratch. Often, inspiration is drawn from other designs to create something unique and different for the talent. It is usually a collaborative process.

I love the increasing openness to diversity of bodies, stories, and voices. In some ways, I think the industry, now more than ever, is more accessible for all. What is difficult is the speed of production that is expected, something that is harder to battle as a slow, made-to-measure brand. We are living in a fascinating moment; the industry is in flux, and with that comes the opportunity to redefine its values.

Balancing creativity with the realities of running a business has been my biggest challenge. There are so many roles to fill that it can be hard to keep the creative excitement high, and it often feels like whatever you do, it’s never enough. What helps is keeping the collections personal to my own life; they become a necessary continuation of my experiences rather than just art for art’s sake. That connection keeps me motivated, even in the middle of all the other responsibilities that come with having a brand.

Seeing women wear my pieces and truly connect with them has been incredible, but equally powerful has been watching strangers interact with and respond to our shows and collections. After S/S 2024 Wild Hearts Bleed, our work began reaching more people, and I received so many comments and messages from those who were going through difficult times or had been through them, saying they felt seen when watching the show and reading the inspiration behind it. Knowing that the worlds we create can make people feel understood is the most rewarding part of what I do.

Dreaming Eli is constantly evolving and expanding. We are exploring new collaborations that I am very excited about. Our first catwalk at London Fashion Week this September was a really special moment for us. Having a catwalk format means more looks, which gives me the chance to expand our product range, adding new styles alongside our usual showstoppers. I had been reimagining how the Dreaming Eli woman looks outside of our signature event wear, and I was looking forward to seeing the results of the research I had been focusing on over the past few months.

Stay true to your own voice, even when the industry tries to mould you into something else. Make your work personal; that’s what makes it powerful. Look for inspiration in lived experience, surround yourself with people who amplify your vision, and remember there’s space to shape the industry from the inside.