Burberry Brings Joy Back to Fashion: Daniel Lee Teams Up With British Textile Legend Celia Birtwell

Comfort and joy are the perfect words to describe Burberry’s spring collection, created by Daniel Lee in collaboration with legendary British textile designer Celia Birtwell.

To mark the British fashion house’s 170th anniversary, Birtwell shared her vintage designs featuring playful “happy” faces and created a new series of botanical prints, which Lee scattered throughout the bright and energetic collection.

Skirts, dresses, trench coats, outerwear and even shoes bloomed with mimosa, blueberries, rosebuds, grapevines and violets. The flowers appeared as three-dimensional embroidery on fitted skirts, delicate prints on trench coats and blurred, almost impressionistic patterns on coats. Birtwell’s instantly recognizable whimsical faces from her “Halloween” series decorated knitwear, coats and low-heeled shoes.

Lee also drew inspiration from the colors of an English garden, particularly lavender and burgundy. They appeared on lightweight silk trench coats adorned with embroidery, so airy they could easily be mistaken for dresses. More structured versions were crafted from silk faille and taffeta, with folds and a deliberately natural, carefree finish left in the fabric.

Lee invited Birtwell to take part in the anniversary project because he wanted to create something special for Burberry’s 170th anniversary. According to Lee, he immediately realized he had found the perfect partner after meeting her.

“I’ve never really collaborated with someone as part of a show before — I think it’s quite difficult. But everyone loves Celia. She is the embodiment of British fashion. Her prints are timeless, and Burberry also inspired her with its signature check. She wanted to interpret it and bring it into her own world,” the designer said.

Birtwell’s vibrant graphics appeared on coats, bags and skirts, giving Burberry’s classic aesthetic a distinctive pop-art energy.

Birtwell, 85, watched the show from the front row and admitted she was “very pleased” when Lee approached her with the idea.

“It’s very good for my brain to do different things. It was fun working with them, and it was a completely unusual challenge for me,” she said.