L.O.L. Surprise!™ and Rainbow High™ Inspired Fashions Come to Life on the Runways of Milan

September 26, 2022

Photos: Courtesy of MGA Entertainment

September is when Fashion Week comes to life and so when it was Milan Fashion Week’s turn to light up the runways, brands such as Versace, Fendi, Armani and Prada immediately come to mind. But when I heard about a runway show from MGA Entertainment, the makers of fashion doll lines, L.O.L. Surprise!™ and Rainbow High™, I had to check it out since this was an unexpected event vying for the attention of the editors, fashionistas and influencers flocking to Milan.

“The link between our popular doll brands and fashion is integral, and there is no better place and time than Fashion Week, in one of the greatest fashion capitals of the world, to bring our beloved characters to the runway,” said Daniela Pavone, Head of Marketing EMEA, MGA Entertainment. “Dolls have always been quintessential to fashion culture at large, and we are proud of our brands which continue to both reflect and inspire the fashion world.”

Rainbow High

Italian designers Francesca Cottone from the Marche region and Mattia Piazza, founder and designer of the Casa Preti brand, took on the challenge of creating capsule collections inspired by the doll brands while spotlighting the values of inclusivity and self-expression that both MGA brands embody. Both designers unveiled their creations on the evening of September 23, 2022 at the Spazio Antologico.

“I remember that in my childhood I was already collecting the MGA Entertainment dolls, they were very popular dolls in the early 2000s. These dolls reflected a bit the looks I wanted to wear,” said Cottone. “At that time I enjoyed creating clothes for my dolls with a small sewing machine, which my parents had given me, and this was certainly one of the first approaches to the world of fashion, as a ‘little designer’.”

L.O.L. Surprise!

“The doll itself is an iconic object that children begin to confront at an early age. Surely the LOL OMG (dolls) bring with them the values that we felt like marrying such as inclusiveness, uniqueness and style.” said Piazza. “For me as a designer it was a challenge to go back to playing with dolls which changed me and led me to reflect. Inside our capsule I tried to tell the different characters of each doll. As a first collaboration with the brand I hope to have succeeded.”

In addition to the colorful and creative looks which captured the spirit of each doll line, accessories also played an important role. The Rainbow High models wore historic CULT booties, the L.O.L. Surprise! O.M.G.™ girls wore Kallisté shoes, and Baldinini from the Romagna region reinterpreted the glamorous boots for the L.O.L. Surprise! segment of the show.