Fashion

44 times The Little Mermaid stepped onto the runway

By José Criales-Unzueta

Photo: Daniele Oberrauch / Gorunway.com

With the much-awaited Disney remake hitting the big screens across the world, we have mermaid-esque iridescent looks, scale-like effects and fishtail skirts on our mind

Disney’s live action remake of The Little Mermaid starring Halle Bailey is set to hit the big screen this month, so we decided to take a look back at the many times designers listened to the siren call and invited mermaids onto their runways. The movie has been in production since 2016, with Bailey’s casting announced in 2019, so there should be no surprise about the wave of sea creature fashion on the the spring/summer 2023 runways, but mermaid-esque fashion is an evergreen.

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While the title character herself is not much of a style icon (sorry, Ariel), the idea of her has inspired many. From damp hair and dewy beauty to soaking-wet draped looks, it seems that fashion has always been craving to live under the sea. But flippin’ your fins, you don’t get too far; legs are required for prancing down the runway. Hence the abundance of fishtail skirts and mermaid gowns, scale-like sequins and paillettes, and marine motifs we’ve seen over the years.

Don’t forget about the jewellery, either; all kinds of shells (yes, including those white puka ones popular in the 2000s) have made their way back to the runways of late – we love Ariel’s gadgets and gizmos just as much as she loves ours.

Scroll through the many times little mermaids chose to explore the shore – and runways – here.

1

Jeremy Scott, spring/summer 2001 ready-to-wear

Photo: Victor VIRGILE/Getty Images

2

Versace, spring/summer 1992 ready-to-wear

Photo: Condé Nast Archive

3

Versace, spring/summer 2021 ready-to-wear.

Photo: Courtesy of Versace

4

Casablanca, spring/summer 2022 ready-to-wear

Photo: Yannis Meynadier / Courtesy of Casablanca

5

Chloé, spring/summer 2022 ready-to-wear.

Photo: Filippo Fior / Gorunway.com

6

Blumarine, spring/summer 2023 ready-to-wear

Photo: Daniele Oberrauch / Gorunway.com

7

Thom Browne, spring/summer 2019 ready-to-wear

Photo: Yannis Vlamos / Indigital.tv

8

Paco Rabanne, spring/summer 2022 ready-to-wear

Photo: Alessandro Lucioni / Gorunway.com

9

Thom Browne, spring/summer 2018 ready-to-wear

Photo: Luca Tombolini / Indigital.tv

10

Moschino, spring/summer 2023 ready-to-wear

Photo: Isidore Montag / Gorunway.com

11

Collina Strada, autumn/winter 2023 ready-to-wear

Photo: Daniele Oberrauch/ Gorunway.com

12

JW Anderson, spring/summer 2023 ready-to-wear

Photo: Isidore Montag / Gorunway.com

13

Botter, autumn/winter 2023 ready-to-wear

Photo: Salvatore Dragone / Gorunway.com

14

Mugler, autumn/winter 1997 couture

Photo: Condé Nast Archive

15

Iris van Herpen, spring/summer 2023 couture

Photo: Courtesy of Iris van Herpen

16

Diesel, Resort 2024

Photo: Courtesy of Diesel

17

Courrèges, autumn/winter 2023 ready-to-wear

Photo: Courtesy of Courrèges

18

Di Petsa, autumn/winter 2023 ready-to-wear

Photo: Filippo Fior / Gorunway.com

19

Di Petsa, spring/summer 2023 ready-to-wear

Photo: Courtesy of Di Petsa

20

Marni, spring/summer 2023 ready-to-wear

Photo: Daniele Oberrauch / Gorunway.com

21

Marques’Almedia, autumn/winter 2022 ready-to-wear

Photo: Dulce Daniel / Courtesy of Marques'Almeida

22

Ferragamo, spring/summer 2023 ready-to-wear

Photo: Filippo Fior / Gorunway.com

23

Nensi Dojaka, spring/summer 2023 ready-to-wear

Photo: Isidore Montag / Gorunway.com

24

16Arlington, autumn/winter 2023 ready-to-wear

Photo: Isidore Montag / Gorunway.com

25

Fendi, autumn/winter 2018 couture

Photo: Kim WestonArnold / Indigital.tv

26

Alberta Ferretti, spring/summer 2013 ready-to-wear

Photo: Filippo Fior / GoRunway.com

27

Prada, autumn/winter 2011 ready-to-wear

Photo: Monica Feudi / Feudiguaineri.com; video: InDigital Media

28

Christopher Kane, autumn/winter 2011 ready-to-wear

Photo: Alessandro Viero / GoRunway.com

29

Marc Jacobs, autumn/winter 2011 ready-to-wear

Photo: Monica Feudi / Feudiguaineri.com; video: InDigital Media

30

Balmain, pre-fall 2023

Photo: Courtesy of Balmain

31

Jean Paul Gaultier, spring/summer 2008 couture

Photo: Stephane Cardinale - Corbis/Getty Images

32

Pucci, spring/summer 2023 ready-to-wear

Photo: Daniele Oberrauch/ Gorunway.com

33

Nina Ricci, autumn/winter 2023 ready-to-wear

Photo: Courtesy of Nina Ricci

34

Bottega Veneta, autumn/winter 2023 ready-to-wear

Photo: Filippo Fior / Gorunway.com

35

Alaïa, spring/summer 2023 ready-to-wear

Photo: Courtesy of Alaïa

36

Fe Noel, spring/summer 2023 ready-to-wear

Photo: Jonas Gustavsson / Courtesy of Fe Noel

37

Conner Ives, autumn/winter 2023 ready-to-wear

Photo: Isidore Montag / Gorunway.com

38

Arturo Obegero, autumn/winter 2022 ready-to-wear

Photo: Courtesy of Arturo Obegero

39

Givenchy, spring/summer 2007 couture

Photo: Karl Prouse/Catwalking/Getty Images

40

Alexander McQueen, spring/summer 2003 ready-to-wear

Photo: Shoot Digital for Style.com

41

Marc Jacobs, autumn/winter 2022 ready-to-wear

Photo: Courtesy of Marc Jacobs

42

Chloé, spring/summer 2022 ready-to-wear

Photo: Filippo Fior / Gorunway.com

43

Theophilio, spring/summer 2023 ready-to-wear

Photo: Isidore Montag / Gorunway.com

44

David Koma, spring/summer 2023 ready-to-wear

Photo: Isidore Montag / Gorunway.com

Originally published on Vogue