By @catagreloni
More than 50 fashion shows were seen in five days at London with a great mix between established brands and new designers that called Le Banana attention. Here, some new brands you should check!
Bora Aksu
London based Turkish designer Bora Aksu received his first acclaim when he graduated from Central St Martin’s MA in 2002. Since then, he didnt´ stop showing great romantic collections, but with a modern twist. Aksu also attracted Dolce & Gabanna´s eye, who purchased pieces from this designer to use them as inspiration.
This demi-couture collection was full of elegant and intriguing pieces in a soft palette of white, pink and sky blue tones in dresses full of ruffles, sheer fabrics and lace. Models came down the catwalk as victorian pilgrims who shared positive messages such as Freedom, Love and Peace, combined with black and white mesh in small and big proportions. A modern and evocative collection.
Haizen Wang
One of the brands we definitely fell in love with. The London based designer built his eponymous womenswear label as one with a masculine/ feminine identity. With architectural references and classic tailoring with bold design, Wang’s signature pieces are exquisitely made.
An oversize silhouette, a darker palette and massive sleeves were dominant on the runway. Classic pinstriped fabrics were mixed with transparent and plastic coats – already a trend at some fashion shows at NY and London-, burgundy jacquards, leather and duvet style outerwear.
Ashley Williams
From her promising debut, four years ago at LFW, with great reviews from the critics, she strarted selling her collections at Selfridges in London, Colette in Paris and Joyce in Hong Kong.
This year she got inspiration from cowboys, in a “Dolly Parton meets Vetements” kinda style. Big Gingham patterns in yellow, red and light blue were mixed with tracking pants and sweatshirts with big signs that said “Mysery”, “Save the Planet” and “Gimme Five!”. I´ll give you five if you share those big sleeves, flowers and fringes, sista! At Le Banana we loved the mom jeans styled with crop coats and cow patterned tops. Wee-ha!
Roberta Einer
Einer´s maximalist and luxury womenswear collection was exposed at a deconstructed tennis court where she showed a young, fresh and joyful style full of coloured sequins, glimmer and a vibrant palette.
Abstract 3D prints were mixed with lady like pants, pleated skirts and dresses and embroidered blouses, wore with silk dresses on top. The beauty was in the mix and Einer made them work with perfection. Patchwork is a trend and Roberta used it in leather jackets, heavily embellished dresses and cropped tops. Memorable and lovely.
Sadie Williams
Colour block and geometric patterns, vibrant tones and sneakers worked perfectly together at Williams´collection. The London-based designer known for metallic embellishments paired with Austrian Swarowski crystals for accents on the edges of white shirts, trousers and sailor style jackets, combined with silk trousers of great proportions. We praise the patchwork quilting job seen on long and short dresses. Fresh, young and shimmery.
Teatum Jones
Catherine Teatum and Rob Jones´ collection was inspired by surreal and unconventional dolls made by German artist Hans Bellmer. Designers said their purpose was to deconstruct the body without prejudice and they sent this message pretty loud by casting a number of models with disabilities in the show.
The collection highlighted seams and stitching in garments with asymmetric splits on skirts and angular cutout details. Black, mustard and wine were used both for men and women in enveloping trench coats, tailored pencil skirts and long dresses in a collection mostly done in plain colours and some geometric patterns. Clean, net, with a modern touch.