Island mode; New weave; Hung up on you.

You meet on an island and fall in love. The result is unforgettable. So is the story of Loewe x Paula’s, as envisioned by Jonathan Anderson on the release of their third liaison. By Alice Birrell.

Everyone wants to lay claim to Ibiza. But which one? The trope goes that there are two faces of the Balearic haven: the wired super-club end, or the blissed-out bohemian hideout of the real island denizens. It’s the latter that served as inspiration for the third collaboration between Spanish luxury house Loewe and legendary old-town Ibiza boutique Paula’s.

“Ibiza is kind of my connection to Spain: it has this free-spirited effect on people. A lot of my fashion references come from holidays there with my family,” recounts Loewe creative director Jonathan Anderson to Vogue. “I’d sit on Agua Blanca beach and see a culture that was so forward and free; it was very liberating.”

Amid the melange of patchouli-soaked hangouts and, later, raves, Anderson used his eagle eye to distil the ideas he found most accelerant in his creative process. “I think it is probably this idea of escapism,” he reflects. “What is important in Paula’s is the idea of a Balearic field, something about enjoyment. It is about femininity. It is about masculinity. It is not about becoming too intellectual, it is not about being heavy.”

And so prints from the Paula’s archive are exuberant in an earthy way that tells of the halcyon days and nights of the 70s, with a hint of 90s rave. Dusky tangerine florals, patchwork batiks and mauve dawn tones with dove motifs mingle with bone linen, netting and fringe finishes.

“We were in a very lucky position that the prints are so strong. It was very easy to use [what] we selected in terms of keeping everything quite simple,” says Anderson. “They have an incredible sense of humour and naivety that I think reflects the island.”

Like the first fabric used by Paula’s founder Armin Heinemann – cretonne chintz, turned inside out – the collection speaks of DIY innovation and a tendency toward craft; this is Loewe, after all. The shell necklaces and yin-yang raffia totes are imbued with such a hand-wrought, sunbleached feel that if you can’t make it to Ibiza, sling on a basket bag, throw on a woven kaftan and you’ll see the fields.