S/S 2026 Collection – Familiar Stories in a New Light

Familiar Stories in a New Light

For S/S 2026 I went back to two designs I already knew very well — The True Summer and The Jungle Dream — and created new colourways for both.

I did not want to change the illustrations themselves. I wanted to see how differently they could feel simply through colour.

This season also introduced several existing Ilona Tambor designs in cotton-silk for the first time. The drawings are familiar, but the fabric gives them a different texture, movement and feeling when worn.

The True Summer in Ivory

The True Summer is a very detailed design, filled with animals, flowers and tropical plants.

For the ivory colourway I wanted to make it softer. Muted greens, gentle pinks and natural shades sit against the light background, while the tiger, zebra, lemur and water lilies remain part of the original composition.

The True Summer Ivory silk scarf feels much calmer than the previous colourways.

I really like how much space the ivory background gives to the drawing. Some of the smaller details are suddenly much easier to notice.

The Jungle Dream in Blue

With The Jungle Dream, I wanted something cooler and fresher for summer.

The leopard and peacock are still at the centre of the illustration, surrounded by the same slightly surreal world of plants and decorative details, but the new blue palette changes its mood completely.

The Jungle Dream Blue silk scarf has a lighter and more serene feeling than the earlier versions.

This is why I enjoy returning to older drawings. Sometimes I look at a design again and immediately know there is another colour I would like to try.

Familiar Designs, a Different Fabric

Another change for S/S 2026 was introducing several of my existing illustrations in cotton-silk.

The Sea Life, The True Summer, Lago di Como, Il Carnevale di Venezia and The Jungle Dream are among the designs now available in this fabric.

I was interested to see how the illustrations would look and feel on something lighter and more softly structured.

Cotton-silk has a subtle luminosity and a gently crisp feel. It does not move in exactly the same way as silk twill, and that is what makes it interesting. The same drawing can feel slightly different simply because of the fabric underneath it.

You can read more about the material in Cotton-Silk Scarves: Lightness, Texture and Illustration .

Returning to Earlier Designs

I do not feel that an illustration has to belong to just one collection.

Some designs stay with me for a long time. I may return to them because I see a new colour combination, or because I want to try the drawing on a different fabric.

That was very much the idea behind S/S 2026.

The True Summer returned in ivory, The Jungle Dream in blue, and several other designs were introduced in cotton-silk.

They are the same illustrations, but each one feels a little different.

For Summer

I wanted the collection to feel light and easy to wear through the warmer months.

There are silk squares, cotton-silk scarves and larger cotton-silk shawls, with different sizes and fabrics giving the illustrations their own character.

For me, S/S 2026 was not about starting everything again. It was about going back to drawings I still love and finding something new in them.

Familiar illustrations, seen again through colour and fabric.

Each piece begins with a line.