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 That
was the Week that was. As London felt the chill, the fashion world
looked ahead to next year's spring-summer collections.
But with the catwalks now dismantled, what memories are we left
with? Our man at the shows James Aldous checks the pulse of Fashion
Week...
Ample
displays of cheek bones you could comfortably hang a coat on, and
a languid pallor oozing from every pore in the SW3 area... it can
only mean one thing: London Fashion Week.
With
nearly 50 designers exhibiting collections for Spring/Summer 2005,
the capital comes alive with modelling, designing and publicising
folk. And of course those of us eagerly awaiting a tangible demonstration
of what everyone will be wearing next year.
Over
the course of just five days, each show is a capsule of predictive
speculation of which trends, colours, cuts and styles will be in
vogue in six months' time.
Despite
various claims that London Fashion Week pales in comparison to its
counterparts in New York, Milan and Paris, this year proved that
British fashion can comfortably blind the eyes of the clothes-hungry.
decadent
days
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Quintessentially
British: Betty Jackson's collection for Spring/Summer 2005
didn't disappoint
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Betty
Jackson - her company of the same name founded in 1981 - always
provides a thoughtful and careful balance between fashion and practicality.
There
is always a touch of tea-on-the-lawn in her quintessentially British
designs and this year was no exception with a lot of blushed pink
and pale blue and even more muted natural colours often finished
with Moroccan-inspired embroidered beads and Apache-style accessories.
Her
collection, she says, was inspired by "decadent days of the
thirties together with the louche, international lifestyle of the
seventies".
In
direct contrast, the Royal Academy of Arts played host to the Top
Shop 'New Generation' designers. One in particular, Danish-born
Camilla Staerk, a graduate of Bromley's Ravensbourne College, produced
a fantastic display of creative talent that focused on black and
white, softened with a liberal application of leather.
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Ravensbourne College graduate Camilla Staerk exhibited as
part of the Top Shop 'New Generation'
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Many
of her designs focused on a simple palette of black and white
topped off with leather trimmings
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Whereas
well-established designers like Betty Jackson seek inspiration from
opulent periods of a bygone age, Staerk looks to contemporary culture
with an emphasis on modern architecture and the work of European
intellectuals such as Milan Kundera.
key
players
Other
top shows on offer included Scott Henshall's 'Chocoholic' collection,
which showed at the Saatchi Gallery and played host to the ultimate
B-list stars, from Kate Lawler to that girl from Hollyoaks
no-one knows the name of.
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In
the pink: Robert Cary-Williams' designs made use of metallic
detail
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Sophie
Anderton, Elize du Toit and Georgina Byrne all made appearances
on the catwalk in a show that featured heavy use of bright pink,
gold and silver. The show was a tribute to Geordie culture with
sponsorship from Newcastle Gateshead Council.
Typically
(or should that be fashionably?) late - to the tune of 90 minutes
was Robert Cary-Williams' show titled '1917'. Featuring strong military
influences, the collection was traditionally avant-garde with natural
fibres combined with metallic detail as a key theme.
In
retrospect then are these five days a firm enough statement to help
assure the future of British Fashion?
Hilary
Alexander, Fashion Editor at The Telegraph, didn't seem too worried
about the absence of some of the key players this year:
"Paris
and Milan are growing too big. It's not a bad thing that some of
our designers choose to move (and show) abroad because it gives
new, exciting talent the chance to thrive."
Same
time next year anyone?
See
also: 10
fashion tips for the unfashionable
Useful links: London
Fashion Week (The BBC is not responsible for the
content of external websites)
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