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It was Sunday of London Fashion Week and the last model had just walked off the catwalk at the JW Anderson show. A hectic flurry soon descended upon the designer, a sea of phones held aloft like antennas. Jonathan Anderson’s collection had been a nostalgic British mix of chunky knits and trench coats, basic school uniforms, retro thermal underwear sets and hats like grandma’s curly gray wigs, all thrown into a subversive dryer for a warped version of the that once seemed familiar. . Because?
“I was looking at ideas of ‘strange’ characters in Britain, the nosy neighbor next door, but then slightly twisted into distortions and grotesque proportions,” Mr Anderson said. He had been inspired by Generation Z’s constant remixing of the past, using the prism of technology or referencing past trends through streetwear.
“I guess I was thinking about how Britain has changed,” he added, “and how we see it in a whole new way.”
It was a fitting meditation for one of the country’s biggest names in fashion, especially given the ongoing celebrations in honor of a momentous birthday: this season, London Fashion Week turned 40.
Milestones inevitably invite comparison and reflection, and much has already been written about the midlife crisis facing the smallest and most rebellious of the four major fashion weeks. A harsh retail climate thanks to a slowdown in luxury demand, particularly for the independent designers who largely populate London’s agenda. The growing power of the giants of luxury groups based in Paris and Milan. And on the eve of Fashion Week, 10 Downing Street, which planned an afternoon tea on Tuesday to close the event, confirmed that Britain had entered recession.
However, it’s refreshing that many designers offered more than just stiff upper lips. There were great clothes galore, from core names like Molly Goddard, Erdem and Simone Rocha, to fresher faces like Dilara Findikoglu and 16Arlington. And a welcome return to the agenda for 2015 LVMH Prize winner Marques’Almeida, with his now-grown designer duo and a handful of sweet kids as models.
From floral brows, oversized coats and faux fur straps to a seasoning of Hollywood stardust on Sunday night thanks to a happy scheduling clash with the BAFTA Film Awards, here are five things that caught our eye this week .
A new “It” color dominated the catwalks
The red runway trend may not be slowing down yet, but one scarlet woman did last season. She has been replaced by a more elegant and discreet lady, who prefers a deeper shade, ranging from burgundy to oxblood, and who exudes an aura of wealth, status and power.
At Roksanda, the elegant opening look (a low-cut black cherry blazer with statement shoulders paired with a tunic layered over pants) had made its public debut on Zendaya several days earlier at a London press conference for “Dune: Part Two”, while Emilia Wickstead opted for dark, luscious glamor with feminine pencil skirts and coats in shimmering carmine leathers and sequins. Molly Goddard layered new ideas and shapes in ruby hues using strips of the brand’s signature tulle and Chet Lo, inspired this season by the Terracotta Army unearthed in China in the 1970s, had a rich earthiness to his signature pointy knit designs . It’s time to drink claret.
The pressure was on Daniel Lee at Burberry
The stakes were high for Burberry this season, as were the flags flying above the giant black tent the brand erected in Victoria Park for its show on Monday night. The critical and commercial response to Daniel Lee’s hugely expensive first two collections as creative director of Britain’s largest luxury house by sales had been lukewarm. The stock price has plummeted lately, thanks to two profit warnings in three months. What could Mr Lee, famous for making a splash at Bottega Veneta in his previous role, pull out of the bag for his third outing at Burberry?
The good and the good of British supermodels, for starters. Agyness Deyn, dressed in a green trench coat and yellow tartan cuffed flared trousers, led a lineup of runway icons, including Lily Cole, Karen Elson, Lily Donaldson, Edie Campbell and Naomi Campbell, to a thumping soundtrack Amy Winehouse retro. They wore outerwear in nude, olive, and oatmeal colors that were designed to exude comfort and style, from fuzzy duffle coats and belted leather field jackets to the fringes and caressable hems that adorned nearly every garment. Also on display were romantic plaid maxi-kilts and thick scarves, ridiculously roomy handbags, silver tasseled loafers and chunky walking boots.
Everything felt much warmer, a little more relaxed. There were moments that almost seemed to hark back to the glory days, before Brexit or Boris Johnson or Riccardo Tisci, to a time when Christopher Bailey harnessed the feel-good feel of Burberry clothing that made it truly desirable and put people back on track. Fashionable London. The fashion map. A front row of Britain’s finest, including Cara Delevingne, Skepta, Lily Allen, Olivia Colman and Joanna Lumley, all screamed with joy and possibly relief.
It will be enough? Time will tell. But sometimes turning back the fashion clock while trying to move forward isn’t a bad thing.
Stars of screen and stage were out and about
Thanks to the BAFTAs (the less said about that red carpet, the better), the stars were in town and front row. Rosamund Pike gave us a turn in Molly Goddard, while Kristin Scott Thomas dazzled in emerald green in Erdem alongside Lily James. Some even hit the runway when Hari Nef opened for Dilara Findikoglu and Joanna Lumley appeared in a presentation for popular jewelry brand Completedworks. Fun fact: Ms. Lumley’s character, Patsy Stone, on the television show “Absolutely Fabulous” was based on Lynne Franks, the founder of London Fashion Week.
But the biggest guest list was the BAFTAs after-party hosted by British Vogue and Tiffany & Company, where local party co-hosts Emily Blunt and Emerald Fennell were joined by Chioma Nnadi, British’s newly installed head of editorial content. Vogue. , so it seemed like his de facto coming out party. Health.
Dressing up is the new casual dressing
London often offers a lot for those craving grunge streetwear, but this season several big names stepped up to offer options for the glam-hungry crowd. Shown in front of the disputed Parthenon Marbles at the British Museum and inspired by the Greek-American soprano Maria Callas, Erdem featured sumptuous draped cocktail dresses and embellished skirt suits, grand opera capes and fluffy flat marabou slippers, as well as earrings in the shape of golden roses, like the real ones thrown at the end of a diva’s performance. Richard Quinn placed clients of his timeless couture creations and his thriving bridal business in the front row of his salon-style show, which had been wrapped in 900 meters (2,950 feet) of his signature floral fabric. .
But it was 16Arlington’s Marco Capaldo, the 2023 British Fashion Council/Vogue Designer Fashion Fund winner, whose furtive take on sophistication seemed the most current. Her oversized bags and knitwear, sheer paneled dresses and shimmering silver evening gowns may have been inspired by misunderstood monsters and had animalistic touches, but there was a simple beauty to her sleight of hand that makes Capaldo worthy to observe.
We went to church (twice, in fact)
It’s not often you see lace-up shorts, corsets, nipples and bare flesh in traditional places of worship, but Dilara Findikoglu isn’t exactly your traditional label. After canceling her show last season due to cash flow issues, Findikoglu made a triumphant, sexually charged return on Sunday night with a collection that critiqued toxic masculinity.
“This is a manifesto for a world order born from a relentless vortex of feminine energy; bringing a new world to life through a massive ritual,” he said in his show notes of the deconstructed corporate suits and shirts paired with boned underwear, PVC pieces, panties made from silver keys, and a white feather cocktail dress. . “This is the way of imagining the world that I know can fix ours.”
Ms. Findikoglu was looking for new beginnings. But with her show, called Wake, Simone Rocha closed the final chapter of a triptych that began last season with Dress Rehearsal and continued last month with Procession, her bridal-themed couture collection for Jean Paul Gaultier. Presented on Saturday night at a 12th-century church, St Bartholomew the Great, the collection was inspired by Queen Victoria’s mourning attire following the death of her husband, Prince Albert.
The corsetry sparkled with crystal embellishments, while the faux fur stoles over the shoulders and back were covered in translucent tufts of organza tailoring. The models, some of whom had roses painted over their eyebrows, carried stuffed lamb-shaped bags and paraded around in Rocha’s popular rhinestone-encrusted Crocs. The devil was in the details.