Classical Puppets: The Rococo Garden

On 23 May 2026, Classical Puppets presented its Rococo garden at Shanghai's 1933 Old Millfun. The former municipal slaughterhouse is an unlikely setting for such romantic clothes: exposed concrete and hard geometry around full skirts, lace and roses. That distance between the building and the dresses made both easier to notice.

The show was titled 18+2: A Dreamlike Journey, The Everlasting Rococo Garden. Historical references supplied the setting, but the collection also found space for dessert colours, local food motifs and the deliberately doll-like proportions that have become central to the brand.

More than two decades of Classical Puppets

Founded in 2005, Classical Puppets has developed a recognisable place within Chinese Lolita fashion through elaborate construction and classical imagery. The interest lies in how the whole outfit takes shape. Bodice, skirt, ornament and petticoat work together; a print alone cannot account for the result.

The proportions can suggest a porcelain doll or a figure in a painted portrait. The skirt extends around the wearer, giving the outfit a shape of its own. On this runway, that approach held together looks whose colours and references varied considerably.

Xiaolongbao at the tea party

The Anthony Xiaolongbao Tea Party design is one of the collection's more unexpected ideas. A familiar Shanghai delicacy appears among velvet-flocked surfaces, gold accents and icing-like decoration. The cake-shaped skirt gives those small motifs a suitably extravagant home.

Purple and pink carry the confectionery association, while the arrangement of the decoration keeps the dress legible. The xiaolongbao motifs sit within the outfit's ornamental scheme, so the local reference feels at ease among the Rococo details.

Layered tea-party looks and the limited purple set.

The limited purple set gives a rose at the chest a clear focal point. Jewel-like details and lace surround it without filling every available space. That restraint matters in clothes this elaborate: the eye needs somewhere to settle before moving to the next detail.

Strawberry chocolate

Strawberry Chocolate, or Meixin Qiaoqiao, takes the dessert reference further. Rounded skirt volume recalls the weight of a brownie, while the changing shades suggest strawberry jam spreading into chocolate. The association comes through texture and colour as much as through decoration.

The full skirt provides the cake-like shape; softer colour transitions make its layers feel less rigid. It is an effective way to use a food reference without relying entirely on a literal print. The dress leaves enough to the viewer's imagination.

A closer look at Victorian Garden

Victorian Garden asks for a different kind of attention. Ribbon embroidery gives the roses depth, with fine stitches softening their edges. The surface suggests flowers seen through morning mist, an effect that is easier to appreciate close up than in a quick view of the silhouette.

Runway views from the garden-inspired collection.

Those raised details give the eye something to return to. A printed flower reads quickly; an embroidered one has an edge, a shadow and a change of texture. In a collection photographed so extensively, this is the kind of work that still rewards looking beyond the first image.

Building the doll-like silhouette

Classical Puppets' use of volume deserves as much attention as its decoration. The bodice establishes one set of proportions, and the skirt and petticoat establish another. Their relationship determines how the whole look sits around the wearer.

Different colours and details built around a shared sense of volume.

This leaves room for a silhouette that does not depend on following the body's natural outline. A bow can alter the balance of a bodice; a band of lace can change how wide or deep a skirt appears. The pleasure is in arranging those parts until the complete image feels resolved.

Classical romance, with room for other references

The show moves between Gothic, Sweet, Classic and Chinese-inspired moods. Black lace produces a different impression from pink dessert colours, even when both dresses rely on similar skirt volume. Embroidered roses draw the eye towards historical romance; familiar Chinese motifs bring another set of associations.

Contrasting palettes and cultural references across the collection.

The xiaolongbao pieces are especially memorable because their local reference has been worked into the garment's palette and ornament. It belongs to the dress as a whole. That gives the collection a more particular point of view than historical romance alone would provide.

After the runway

More than two decades after its founding, Classical Puppets continues to find useful material in historical dress without treating it as a reconstruction exercise. Here, embroidery and classical ornament sit alongside chocolate colours and a Shanghai food reference. The careful proportions make the combination convincing.

The strongest looks give an elaborate idea a clear shape. There is plenty to look at, but the rose, the curve of a skirt or a small familiar motif offers a way into the outfit. That is where this garden becomes wearable: in the decisions that turn an imagined scene into a dress.