LED presents Baile da Saudade

On Thursday, September 17, the duo brings the block to the street for the first time independently, turning the presentation into an exercise in memory, identity and experimentation. “The collection reflects the many phases I’ve lived through, from the memories of Caratinga, Minas Gerais, where I was born, to the most recent recollections,” says Célio. The hometown, the accumulated experiences and the codes that have accompanied the brand’s development converge in a collection that looks back without abandoning movement. Poás, fringe, beaded bags and shirts with heart cut‑outs on the back reappear as elements of a kind of affective archive, while crochet, the technique that gave rise to the label in 2014, reasserts its presence as an essential part of this language. More than retrieving recognizable pieces or symbols, the duo revisits what helped shape their identity to explore what can still emerge from these references.

Memory, after all, is not an image preserved intact over time. It transforms with each return, incorporates new experiences and takes on different meanings as the perspective of the revisitor changes. In fashion, this process can appear in a texture, a finish, or a detail that carries the memory of a place, a person, or a life stage. By choosing longing as a theme, Célio and Cleu start from an intimate experience to build a narrative that resonates with the collective relationship to dressing. There is something familiar in the recurring elements, but also a willingness to shift them, combine them, and allow them to acquire new possibilities of existence.

The crochet occupies a central place in this investigation because it brings together technique, time and memory on a single surface. Since the brand's founding in 2014, manual work has been part of building its identity, creating a language that is recognized both for its materiality and for the freedom to experiment with shapes and volumes. In this collection, the research delves into different textures, revealing how clothing can approach a tactile experience, inviting the eye to imagine contact with each surface. Short dresses with ruffles, plush tops with peplum, pieces constructed from woven fabric strips and compositions covered with pom-poms expand the duo's vocabulary.

Clothing does not rely solely on silhouette to create presence. It also asserts itself through relief, volume, repetition, and the way materials respond to movement. Fabric ceases to be merely a surface that covers the body and becomes an active participant in the composition, generating contrasts between more structured areas and others that seem to take on a life of their own. There is an almost architectural dimension to this process: each stripe, layer or application influences the final design and alters the relationship between garment and body. At the same time, the presence of crochet and handcrafted textures evokes a temporality distinct from that imposed by the industry's speed.

Handcrafted work demands attention, repetition and knowledge, elements that leave traces on the piece even when they are not immediately apparent. Rather than treating the handmade as a nostalgic reference, Célio and Cleu place it in dialogue with contemporary research in construction and styling. The result is a collection in which memory does not act as a creative limit but as a starting point for new material experiments. Each texture seems to retain a trace of something familiar, though its combination with other surfaces produces an unexpected image. In this meeting of recollection and invention, manual making gains strength not only for what it represents but for the formal possibilities it offers to creation.

The styling deepens this inclination to blend codes and generate meaning through contrast. Crochet vests are paired with tailored micro‑shorts, beaded belts accompany suits, and jacquard overshirts are worn inside‑out, exposing the lining. The pairings shift expectations about finish, formality, and how a garment should be presented. The inside, traditionally hidden to preserve the garment’s final appearance, becomes visible and integrates into the composition. A detail that usually stays backstage becomes part of the language, showing that the construction of a piece can also create aesthetic interest beyond its most obvious face. The meeting of crochet and tailoring brings together worlds that carry different usage and perception codes. On one side, the handcrafted technique introduces texture, irregularity, and a more sensory relationship with the material.

By choosing saudade as the guiding thread, Célio and Cleu turn the independent debut into a moment of recognizing their own history, but also opening up to what has not yet been experienced. The return of elements such as polka dots, fringe, beaded bags, heart cutouts and crochet reaffirms Led's identity without locking it into a formula. New textures, styling combinations, the first shoes and the prospect of a collaborative space point to a brand interested in expanding its universe without abandoning the traces that brought it here. This relationship between memory and transformation is particularly significant in an industry that often equates novelty with erasing what came before. On the contrary, the collection suggests that revisiting the past can be a way to create difference, provided the memory is not treated as an untouchable image. Saudade gains strength when it ceases to be merely recollection and begins to participate in the present, influencing choices, materials and ways of imagining the future.