Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Live From... London Fashion Week, Day 4

Burberry Prorsum 


With 60s icon Jean Shrimpton playing muse for Christopher Bailey this season, silhouettes had that swing-shaped twig-legged silhouette, which played out through oversized outerwear and slim-cut pants that finished in a wide flare. 

The look: Coats, coats and more coats
Silhouette: Sturdy outerwear shapes, lean tailoring and skinny legs
Key items: Outerwear is always central to a Burberry collection, but never more so than this winter, with three-quarters of the total womenswear exits offering a coat or jacket. The signature trench arrived in heavy wool with domed shoulders and oversized storm capes/gun flaps, patent leather-trimmed tweed with fox-fur shoulders, or slimline silk wool embossed with cable-knit patterning. Duffel coats arrived as fitted jackets with dropped waists or swing-cropped with bell sleeves, or were worked into long-line sweaters featuring the patent toggle fastenings and turn-up buttoned cuffs. Elsewhere there were sculpted coats with overblown balloon sleeves, domed cape coats, mink officer coats, swing shapes with pleated backs cinched with wide martingales, sheared and banded fur options, a peplum double-buttoned jacket with tall funnel neck, and short jackets in mink and cashmere knits. In addition to the plethora of coats, there were sweet drop-waisted dresses with bell skirts, tailored sheaths with keyhole cutouts, fur-sleeved knitted sweaters and two pants shapes - either copped drainpipes with zipped ankle or long slim-cut flares
Colours: Three palettes built the collection, which opened with flat planes of juicy brights - orange, red, pea green and kingfisher blue - followed by a passage of muted autumnal tones of russet, moss green, ochre and camel, before closing with simple black and white
Fabric & knit: Compact wools, stretch wool, silk wool, brushed buffalo-check wools, marled yarns, grainy tweeds, bonded fabrics, patent leather, matt quilted cire, tinsel fibres, cashmere, cable knits and knitted furs, shaved furs, fox, mink and jaguar mink
Print & pattern: Woven checks and plaids
Details & trims: Feature sleeves - overblown, bell or balloon, keyhole cutouts, patent duffel toggles, patent leather trims, fur shoulders and sleeves, oversized or narrow storm capes/gun flaps, micro quilting, banded fur and patent leather, funnel necks, tab shoulders, flared peplums, buttoned-sleeve cuffs, zipped trouser cuffs, narrow double-buttoning
Footwear: Extreme platform wedges with notched heel and thick treads either buckled or tasselled, in polished leather or croc, sometimes with a woven leather detail on the vamp
Accessories: The Haymarket bowling bag in wide width, narrow height or a taller north-south shape, featuring oversized leather tassels and some with textile panels in the house check. Long-strapped cross-body bags carried as clutches, some rib-quilted, others in textiles with leather trim. Semi-circular clutch bags with oversized tassels only in black-and-white combinations

Todd Lynn


Todd Lynn cited past and present “revolution” as the inspiration for his winter collection, which resulted in a series of battle-ready pieces, some that protected and concealed, and others that bared the slashed scars of war. 

The look: Protective battle skins
Silhouette: Strictly tailored, softened with occasional drape
Key items: Zip-up biker jackets featuring tall funnel necks that partially cover the face, or fold-over capelet collars. Super-skinny pants and leggings - some cigarette-cropped with fin pockets, others with zips running the length of the leg. Pants are sometimes layered with spiral-twisting ribbed-knit dresses in laddered stitches or drape-skirted dresses with felted wool shell tops featuring a slashed shoulder
Colour: Muted shades of moss, white sand, greyed sage, brick red and black
Fabric & knit: Draped wool jersey, stretch wool, heavy wool rib, felted knits silk, fine semi-sheer knits, fox, mink, leather and suede
Details & trims: Shoulder slashes, spliced leather inserts, kick flares at the back of jackets, zip-up funnel capelets, wrap-around zippers, horn buttons, drape, panelling
Footwear: Christian Louboutin suede platform courts with a ridged leather panel
Accessories: Above-the-elbow gauntlet gloves

Paul Smith


Paul Smith is good at menswear. He’s good at tailoring. He’s great at considering those quirky little details that make a standard piece unique. So if it ain’t broke, why fix it, even if it’s meant to be for women? This was borrowed-from-the-boys dressing in its purest form, and while it may not have been revolutionary design, it was a strong case in point for playing to your strengths.

The look: Casual androgyny
Silhouette: Relaxed and boyish
Key items: Save for a handful of dresses at the end, it was a collection as dominated by trousers as Burberry was coats. There were cropped and cuffed comfort-fit peg pants, slouchy rolled cords, casual chinos and love-worn boyfriend jeans in washed blue denim. Topping the plethora of pants came sheer shirts and crisp cotton button-down shirts, knitted polonecks and loose-fit boyfriend sweaters, which were then further layered with oversized cardis, tailored boyfriend blazers and mannish overcoats or minimal commuter macs. It wasn’t until the final few looks that girlishness broke through the androgyny, with a series of embroidered silk dresses - one a cheongsam layered over wide-leg pants, another a cap-sleeved column
Colours: Understated greys, browns and neutrals, with washed denim blue, punchy violet and bright orangeFabric & knit: Linen blends, pinstripe suiting, cotton shirting, flannel, wool, Harris tweed, heathered yarns, popcorn stitches, chintzed cottons, washed corduroy, silk, panne velvet, lace, rabbit
Print & pattern: Natty polka dots and shirting stripes
Details & trims: Coloured buttons, mismatched sleeve linings, contrast-coloured waistbands on pinstripe pants, embroidered florals, cutaway revers, button-down collars
Footwear: Mannish flats - classic brogues, loafers and oxfords
Accessories: Slouchy knit beanies, chain-handled satchels, silk ties


Giles


After summer’s candy-coloured pop-kitsch collection, which took nothing too seriously, Giles Deacon took a dramatically dark turn for winter with a collection inspired by the covered-up sexualisation of 19th century dressing. “Austere, not austerity. There’s a notion of sex without acres of exposed flesh,” he said. 

The look: Fetishised Edwardiana
Silhouette: Form-following with constricted waists
Key items: The white shirt - either with Edwardian high collars and cuffed sleeves or sleeveless and swing-shaped but still with that high collar, which also appeared for dresses and skirts, or as poloneck sweaters. Body-conscious sheath dresses and tailored skirt suits were demurely cut at the knee, while long maxi-column gowns arrived in printed silks. Outerwear included a structured cape in gold brocade, an oversized lamb’s leather donkey jacket, and long goat-hair options cinched with waspie belts, while tailored jackets featured a folded peplum. For evening, gowns, cocktail dresses and pantsuits had a gothic drama to them, with long goat or feather trims, and lace or sheer panels revealing hints of skin
Colours: Puritanical black and white, rich jewel-toned teal, pale gold and camel
Fabric & knit: Crisp white cotton, smooth wools, silk and silk jersey, super-fine tulle sheer, Swiss lace, tinsel-shot glitter tweed and brocade, lamb’s leather, glossy calfskin, long goat hair, acid-stripped peacock feathers dyed black
Print & pattern: An overblown reproduction print of Paul Delaroche’s painting The Execution of Lady Jane Grey, Art Nouveau florals inspired by the work of William De Morgan
Details & trims: Edwardian pie-crust-frilled collars and cuffs, jet beading, feathered collars, goat-hair trims, bondage straps and peekaboo sheers
Footwear: Peep-toe ribbon-laced ankle boots by Gina
Accessories: Girdles and waspies, satin hair bows, jewelled collars

Mark Fast


In a bid to expand his repertoire, Mark Fast introduced leather and skin to his signature engineered knitwear. Although the show opened with a strong section of warm textured wools worked into believable outerwear, bondage and fetish seemed to be the main theme, adding further sex appeal to his already racy knit dresses. 

The look: Skimpy knits and bondage leather
Silhouette: Signature body-con with new, looser T-shirt shapes and swing flare
Key items: The opening exits were possibly the most successful of the collection - a softly belted wrap coat with looped wool panels and exaggerated shoulders, followed by a great cropped jacket cinched with a drawstring waist. A suede T-shirt dress and a funnel-neck side-fastened wrap shift were also strong, as was the cranberry-coloured calfskin jacket with trailing bondage straps. Less successful were the leather pieces - hooded rain macs, cutaway dungarees, string-laced leggings and off-the-shoulder tops. Signature skin-tight knit dresses were as short and sassy as ever, featuring string-strapped halternecks, while matching knit crop tops and high-waist pencils had a youthful appeal
Colours: Winter white, sandy beige, cranberry, vermilion and black
Fabric & knit: Looped wool resembling sheepskin, ridged and ribbed knits, signature ladder stitches and engineered cobweb knits, tufted wool fringe, pleated knits with a concertina-like spring. New material directions saw the introduction of suede, glossy calfskin and super-fine slicked leather
Details & trims: Banded hems and cuffs, exaggerated shoulders, high-low hemlines, pleated knits, fetish string lacing, buckled bondage straps, square fins
Footwear: Knee-high lace-up boots, chunky black cutout shoes, spike-heeled slingbacks decorated with a fluffy pompom
Accessories: A fur Cossack hat, stacked chunky bangles

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