Keren Craig, co-founder and co-creative director of the fashion label Marchesa, recently returned to Nashville for a fashion show featuring their Spring 2017 collection. Keren and her partner, Georgina Chapman, met at London’s Chelsea College of Arts before founding Marchesa in 2004. With a flamboyant Italian aristocrat as their muse, the ladies create exceptionally feminine collections that combine ethereal fabrics, exquisite detailing and flawless draping. Nordstrom invited both Nashville and out-of-town fashion insiders for the special presentation — the first following New York Fashion Week — and a chance to meet the stunning designer. Before the show, Keren took some time to talk with us about Marchesa and to tell us what she wears on weekends.

This is exciting. Have you been to Nashville before?

Yes, I came with Georgina ... about five years ago. I actually came with my mother, and we came with our kids — we only had one each at the time. And we did a fundraiser, a fashion show, here a while ago.

Symphony Fashion Show?

Yes! So, I have been before, and I have done some trunk shows here before. But I haven't been here for a few years. It's exciting to be here!

When did your interest in fashion begin?

I mean, really ever since I can remember. I always was obsessed with party dresses when I was a little girl. All I wanted to do was get my mom to buy a party dress ... a taffeta party dress. [laughs] I just think it's in your bones when you're into fashion. It's like you can't get away from it. You're just obsessed with it.

What is it that you and Georgina most admire about each other?

We met when we were at college, and we've come a long way together, and we're best friends. And we're very lucky that we can really spend the day with your [sic] best friend every day and still work and still have fun and have a laugh. And Georgina is [an] amazingly talented person, and she's a devoted wife, a devoted mother. We've had that experience of having kids at the same time, and ... we've grown up together, and it's really lovely. And also we have two different paths. I'm a textile designer, so I come from the embroidery world, and Georgina comes from the draping world. So, we have our own synergies that work well together.

Do you have a typical Marchesa woman?

We do like to think that any woman who wants to [can] put on a dress and have a transformative experience. That's what we really try and achieve with Marchesa, to really feel that a woman can put on a dress and really feel their best and feel fantastic. So, I hope that could be every woman out there.

Your collections are so feminine and so glamorous. What was your inspiration for Spring 2017?

So what you’re going to see today, we really took the idea of the beauty of the day. We start with the dawn and the light of the dawn and [the] idea of dew on the fields and that sort of translucent feeling. And then we take you through a journey of the different kinds of light; there’s a lot of play on color. Then we end up with dark, dark twilight nights with twinkling stars. So, it's the journey of a day.

The fabrics are iridescent. 

Lots of iridescence, exactly. Lots of shimmer and then obviously the beading is very shimmery. Yes, lots of feathers, and there's also a sort of Grecian feel. We were also looking at some goddesses, so there's a feeling of Greek goddesses in there too.

How does your muse, Marchesa Luisa Casati, still influence what you do? 

She always wanted to become a living work of art, and she was very powerful, very fearless in all of her life, but especially in her fashion and how she lived her life. So for us, we try and take the essence of that and stay bold and stay true to what we believe in.

Brides — and especially in the South, debutantes — have to be thrilled that you've launched Marchesa Notte Bridal. 

Yes, thank you. We're very excited too!

What sparked your decision to do your next bridal line?

Well, I mean, it's something we've always wanted to do ... We actually launched Marchesa and Notte at the same time, so they've always been sisters, and we've had both lines all the way through the journey of Marchesa. And ever since we launched our Marchesa Bridal, we've talked about doing the Notte Bride and, you know, finally it was the right time for us; we had the right focus, the right amount of time to really focus on it. We're just really excited that the bride out there can have a Marchesa bridal gown, you know, who maybe hasn't got the big budget to blow or maybe wants a couple of dresses or wants that more zip-up-and-go dress. So, we're really excited, and it's something we've wanted to do for a long time.

How does this Notte Bride differ from the Marchesa Bride?

I don't know how much she does differ. I think that a lot of women who buy the Marchesa line buy the Notte line too. So, it may just be someone who ... has a destination wedding and wants something a little more zip-up-and-go, or maybe she wants a couple of dresses. So, I really think it is the Marchesa woman, and then also it's more accessible for the woman who can't afford that.

Was there a separate inspiration or muse for the bridal line?

I mean, I think it's the similar feeling. It's the woman who wants to feel romantic. She wants to look timeless and classic, for sure, but also just wants to feel their [sic] most beautiful self. We hope! 

For the woman who wanted to add a little Marchesa into her life, what would you suggest?

We have a really fun accessory line that actually is sold here in Nordstrom ... And I always just think, you know, even if you've got a day dress on and you want to transform it into a nighttime thing, you put on a great pair of earrings, a great pair of Marchesa heels, and you're ready to go.

You've got the lines, handbags, shoes and jewelry, and you've got families. What do you do to relax?

Well, I have a house upstate, and on the weekends, we go up to the countryside, and it's very peaceful. And I spend time with my two beautiful daughters and my husband, and I'm really very low-key on the weekends — spend time with friends, cook and just [live] a very normal lifestyle. [laughs]

What do you wear? [laughs]

Well, you know, I still quite like to dress up! I love to wear a kaftan. I love to walk around the house in a kaftan.

Nashville has a flourishing fashion industry. We have more than 300 independent brands making us the highest per capita behind LA and New York. The Nashville Fashion Alliance is the incubator for all aspects of the industry. 

That is really amazing! How wonderful. Wow. How amazing. I am so happy to hear that!

What advice would you give anyone here wanting to make their big mark in the fashion world?

The one thing that we've really discovered along the way is that you really have to stay true to your vision. So, I think it's easy to get a little swayed by maybe what the trends might be doing or what other people are doing, but I think if you really stay true to what your focus and your vision is and what you truly believe, then you'll be successful.    

Photos courtesy of Getty Images