Addison Rae is Petra Collins’ perfect all-American runaway bride (2024)

18July 2024

Tumblr girls rise up: extremely online OG icon Petra Collins is back to rejuvenate her hype-y fashion label “I’m Sorry”, dropping an SSENSE-exclusive first collection celebrating pageant princesses, runaway brides, and all things Americana.

Across three offerings, Collins will link up with three collaborators: this time around, it’s the turn of British-American designer Mimi Wade, who pays tribute to girls gone wild, messed-up Hollywood glamour, and sweaty Spring Break road trips across the US. On the line-up? 80s-inspired wedding dresses and reworked cheerleader kits, trashy tight tees that fit just right, and Wade’s signature kitty-cat hats, all of which taps into the still-going-strong coquette trend that’s got hot girls everywhere in a chokehold.

With the drop comes a new campaign, in which pop princess Addison Rae takes centre stage. It’s a lo-fi Tumblr-indebted affair, all captured by Richard Kern. It’s almost as if someone’s finally gotten their hands on the passwords for their forever-locked Tumblr accounts, with Rae slipping into tacky silver bikinis and fetish-tinged looks, smudging up her eyeliner, and smoking cigs held between her toes –bendy!

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It’s not just clothes though. Partnering with jewellery designer Tarina Tarantino, Collins has created an eclectic offering of souvenir-style necklaces, rings and earrings, each charm and keepsake picked up from a stop along the way of Collin’s neverending All-American road trip from neon beach bars to roadside vending machines. Completing the “I’m Sorry” girl summer essentials kit are retro-style string bags from Antoni & Alison designed to hold dripping wet bikinis and candy-coloured gift-shop memorabilia.

Joining us live from Montana Airport, via the magic of a Zoom link in the boarding lounge, Petra Collins talks all things “I’m Sorry”, sh*tposting, and summer essentials.

I was just fangirling over the Addison images and the whole “I’m Sorry” world. Where does it come from?

Petra Collins: I really wanted to dip back into my old work, particularly my work as a teenager. We imagined a story where this girl is either running away from a wedding, then she goes to some crazy spring breaker party and changes into this sexy fetish outfit or she's getting married to her best friend and what’s going on in this Florida house is the lead-up. It was very either-or –a choose your own adventure story.

Is she an evolution of the previous “I’m Sorry” girls?

Petra Collins: It's different characters but they're all in the same cast. She’s the leading girl this time. I see the next three collections as a trilogy, so each of the upcoming designers is the costume designer for each movie. This one is kind of a dark comedy erotic thriller that’ll move into something more kawaii and cute and feminine but with a twist. There’s always a fetishy twist. Actually, this one is a bit Muriel’s Wedding.

How would you describe this leading lady?

Petra Collins: Haunted, sexy, spicy.

How would you soundtrack the film?

Petra Collins: Oh my god, I’ll think about it on the plane and send you a playlist.

[At this point, the audio is cut off by a the airport tannoy announcing a final call to passengers for Denver in a thick Montana accent]

I feel like I’m there, it goes with the collection.

Petra Collins: It’s very old-school Americana in here. There’s a lot of that in the collection because neither Mimi and I are American so we kind of fetishise that type of summer break or that aspect of the American landscape.

I loved the “shadowbanned” dress from the previous collection. It feels more directly about meme culture, whereas this one feels internet culture-adjacent in less of a chronically online way.

Petra Collins: I’m so obsessed with American Mormon polygamist culture and that was a take on one of those classic dresses. I'm obsessed with escape fantasies and this became the story for the last collection: she escapes and becomes a big internet star. We have one this season which is similar, with the rhinestone beauty queen sash. It’s very Drop Dead Gorgeous.

What would your pageant talent be?

Petra Collins: I'm not good at doing anything admin-wise in my life in general, but I can plan an incredible road trip. There's a website called Roadside in America, I'm very good at navigating that. So maybe that's my talent but I'll probably lose for showing up on stage with my computer and classes.

“With the campaign I wanted to see skin, I wanted to keep Addison’s pimples and sunburn. Everything is so tightened up and cleaned up and filtered, it's fun to go back to my style that I did when I was 15 on Tumblr, which is very messy” – Petra Collins

I’ve just started watching Real Housewives Beverly Hills with Denise Richards and that feels like a weird parallel.

Petra Collins: My favourite is Salt Lake City. It’s set in Utah and they’re all Mormons and it’s insane.

I love your take on the pageant girls as messy people beneath the glitz and glam, and the campaign is so reminiscent of the hazy, dreamy Tumblr era. Maybe it's the retaliation against clean girl slick back buns and old money aesthetics.

Petra Collins: Definitely, with the campaign I wanted to see skin, I wanted to keep Addison’s pimples and sunburn. Everything is so tightened up and cleaned up and filtered, it's fun to go back to my style that I did when I was 15 on Tumblr, which is very messy. It feels satisfying to do that. I want to see messiness in the world especially because the world is so messy and it's f*cked right now.

The “I'm Sorry” Instagram really takes me back to the Tumblr days.

Petra Collins: I love it, It’s literally like my personal account. I get to throw up like anything that I like. I miss Tumblr so much and Instagram is very much that for me, my old account that doesn't exist anymore. The big thing about “I'm Sorry” is silliness and humour. It's a great outlet for me. I think some people think I'm very serious and “I'm Sorry” Instagram brings me so much joy.

What’s next for your protagonist, where is she going?

Petra Collins: She's about to go to Japan, it's taking her over. We're about to enter a Japanese horror movie. It’s been great working with the three designers. It's so different working with each person and it's really fun because I've known them as designers and I've collected their clothes. I was always curious to see what their process is like and it's been very fun seeing how their brains work and how my thoughts translate to their designs.

Who are you loving at the moment?

Petra Collins: I'm a big Matthew Barney fan and I just went to see The Cremaster Cycle at the Egyptian Theater in Los Angeles. It was this Hungarian opera which is really cool because I’m Hungarian and it takes place in the bathhouse that I grew up going to, it's very hard to find online and was amazing seeing it. A full circle moment. Also Grace Horan, I love her lamp work. Also Kaho Okazaki, Lila’s esoteric dolls and Mario Ayala are three artists I’m loving at the moment.

Any other summer obsessions or essentials?

Petra Collins: I want to say something very controversial because I know people are intense about it, but I don’t wear sunscreen. I was scared to say it but whatever and you know what? Lemons for hair, or sun-in. I’m naturally blonde but the way I dye my hair is with a lemon. Every summer my sister and I are like “we gotta do the lemon”. So I guess no sunscreen, lemon in your hair, coconut water or Gatorade lime pepino and the Roadside America app.

Click through the gallery above for a closer look at the campaign and head to SSENSE to shop.