Oh Em Gee, dELiA*s Is Back!
“Every ’90s girl remembers the dELiA*s catalogue hitting her mailbox,” says Shaudi Lynn, co-founder of a brand called Dolls Kill, which launched in 2011 with a similar aesthetic.
It’s true: I remember squealing with glee every time the dELiA*s catalogue arrived, spending hours pouring over its colorful, cheerful-looking pages. It offered a freedom of choice that was new and exciting for someone my age: freedom to shop, and decide how I wanted to present myself to the world. When I think about it, dELiA*s was probably my first introduction to what fashion could be.
Now, 25 years since its founding, dELiA*s is back through a limited-edition revival collection by Dolls Kill. “It felt like the right time to introduce it to a whole new generation,” said Lynn. Available exclusively through the Dolls Kill website and retail stores, dELiA*s by doLLs KiLL includes 70 pieces of clothing, shoes, and accessories, all ranging in price from $18–$88.
What would the dELiA*s girl wear today? This is the question Dolls Kill asked when designing the new collection. They went back to the source, flipping through old catalogues and making updated versions of some standout pieces. “It’s funny how modern some of the styles feel,” said Madelyn Wicks, an associate buyer at Dolls Kill. A certain blue and yellow butterfly sweater in the Dolls Kill collection, for example, was modeled after one found in a ’90s dELiA*s catalogue. They also re-created some of their graphic tees and PJ sets. “We wanted to pay homage to those iconic looks, because we knew people would be looking for them,” Wicks added.
Today, a blue and purple plaid dELiA*s peacoat still hangs in the back of my closet. I bought in middle school, and it still fits — only a lot more cropped. I haven’t been able to let it go. It was my first “cool” coat, and I wore the crap out of it. Now, maybe I’ll finally be able to find a replacement.
See our favorites from the dELiA*s by doLLs KiLL collection, below.
