Day 5 London Fashion Week

The final instalment of my LFW highlights - round ups of Milan and Paris to come. That's Fashion Month been and gone again until September - what I am supposed to do in the meantime? Pour over all the trends!!! Enjoy!

Anya Hindmarch

 

Last AW we were treated Kelloggs cereal characters (Tony the Tiger was a masterstroke, I still have my unopened box of Fashion Flakes from Paris), Spring/Summer 2015 gave us emojis and speech bubbles. Everyone was waiting with baited breath to see what the main influences would be on this season’s collection. Think Highway Code. With quirkiness and wit. A variety of road signs were featured on bags and clothes - Men at Work red triangles, STOP in white lettering on deep red snakeskin, roundabouts, no U turns - I especially liked the tiny Slow Down clutch, which was vying for my favourite alongside the retro Little Chef bag. Typical witty touches included mini tasselled traffic cone key rings and air fresheners. The Eddie Stobart lorry bag was nigh on genius, and the fur scarfs with emojis are sure to coveted by street stylists and bloggers. Clothes were adorned with mini road sign and smiley face print, alongside No Recovery motifs and STOP emblazoned across a furry sweater. You could see the desire on everyone’s faces. The show ended with a memorable performance by London Gay Men’s Chorus dressed as road workers in hard hats and hi-vis. You can no longer say a long journey on the motorway is boring. Hindmarch has somehow managed to make the M25 look fun. 

Christopher Raeburn

The king of outerwear presented a collection which offered new takes on classic outerwear pieces and fabrics, as well as a whole host of interesting little touches to differentiate it from previous collections. Yes, there were the to-be-expected duffle coats, jumpsuits and capes, but with a twist. He made good use of a wide white stripe print which wasn’t unlike road markings, which was both striking and on trend. The colour palette was scarlet red, burnt orange, black and grey. Stand out prints involved a shark motif (which was also seen featured on coffee cups served around Somerset House) and an amazing bubble print. Workwear involved a dungaree dress and a variety of jumpsuits. The details were delicious. the uneven, shearling collars, the tiniest piece of sheer drape on skirts with side splits, the knit on the scarves and hats was great. The last few looks brought together elements of everything previously seen - very Men at Work featuring orange and black, quilted, striped and padded, a killer cape, lopsided collar and skirt splits/sheer.  

Ashley Williams

Up and coming designer Ms Williams was part of the BFC Newgen showcase, which means she is firmly on the London Fashion map. Her first collection last season was a critical success, and prior to that she showed as part of the Fashion East collective. This collection screamed party, don’t take yourself too seriously, and celebrate your inner grungy teenager. A skater sticker face motif appeared throughout, as a patch on sweaters and tiled over skirts and leggings. There were some great belts which created a sleek silhouette, and nice use of shearling and PVC. I particularly liked the bright knitted gloves and the sheer zigzag pieces towards the end. And a trend for knee holes is bound to catch on - you saw it here first. 

Marques’Almeida

All hail the new King and Queen of denim! Following their recent collections and successful collaboration with Topshop, the design duo pushed its beloved denim to the limits, and offered new takes on one of the oldest and most popular materials around. It was frayed, draped, moulded into corsets and parkas, deconstructed, slashed and tied to spectacular effect around the neck and waist. Indigo, washed, even dyed red and coral - what they can’t do with denim isn’t worth seeing. They also threw in some interesting sheer looks, as well as current favourites shearling and metallics. The final looks were in printed, floral brocade, treated to the same skilful manipulation as the denim. The models were tied and wrapped up, almost like gifts. Get one of their denim dresses which will last you numerous seasons.