As a fashion capital, the city has always been a testbed for experimentation and creativity and no Brexit or Storm Dennis was going to change that, it seems. The message from its most lauded (and mostly millennial) designers: Keep calm, carry on and evolve with the times.
Molly Goddard – synonymous with irreverently frothy tulle frocks reminiscent of children’s party wear – for example toned down her signature dresses by layering them over Fair Isle knits. The effect: a more practical yet no less delightful affair from the 30-year-old. Meanwhile the ever-conceptual JW Anderson, 36, artfully treaded the line between the outre and wearable with a line-up spanning sinuous wrap LBDs and tuxedo suits with oversized shawl collars to sculptural gowns covered in tinsel or shaggy wool. He even coined a new term to describe this eclectic, hyper modern way of dressing: nouveau chic.
Over at Burberry, chief creative officer Riccardo Tisci – Gen X-born, but always one to have his finger on the pulse of the next generation – drew inspiration from a melting pot of cultures to put a fresh spin on British wardrobe staples. Sophisticated sheaths came rendered in Madras checks. Rugby shirts were deconstructed and turned into fluted tops and dresses and, perhaps best capturing Tisci’s innovativeness: clever adaptations of the brand’s famous trench coat – from a sensuous off-shoulder version to transformable hybrid styles with strategically placed zippers and buttons.
Consider the season a lesson in resilience: The future’s bright when one can bridge reality with imagination.
Richard Quinn paid a tribute to the cockney Pearly Kings and Queens of London whose iconic mother-of-pearl-swathed outfits he deemed as “working class couture”.
Hands up if these models at Richard Quinn remind you of the dancing twin emojis.
Menswear made their debut at the Richard Quinn show.
One last look at the Richard Quinn feathered confections before the models headed backstage.
One of the male models at Richard Quinn show unmasked.
To eat or not to eat? That was the question in our heads when we came face-to-face with this table spread at the Rixo presentation.
It was a wetter-than-usual London Fashion Week this year thanks to Storm Dennis.
The North Face x MM6 Maison Margiela collaboration = Outdoor gear with a New Wave edge.
Need these super cool staff lab coats at MM6 Maison Margiela stat.
Gucci wasn’t the only brand which had a backstage-themed show for Fall/Winter 2020. Just a few days earlier in London Fashion Week, guests had to walk past the backstage at MM6 Maison Margiela in order to exit the show venue.
En route to the Molly Goddard show, we stumbled upon the cast of a film shoot taking a break. How chic were their post-War outfits?
A majestic view of the Molly Goddard show venue at Central Hall Westminster.
Molly Goddard played hostess with the mostest, seating guests at her show at long dining tables stocked up with bread and water.
Could maximalist style star and jewellery buyer Lauren Kulchinsky Levison (left) be eyeing that salmon pink frou frou Molly Goddard number on the catwalk?
Jourdan Dunn schooling us on how to wear denim for cocktail hour at the Molly Goddard show.
Edie Campbell and Derek Blasberg were also in the crowd at Molly Goddard.
Glamour with a dose of ooh-la-la at Huishan Zhang.
Silver foil covered the entire length of the Erdem runway. It was a tribute to the collection’s muse, the photographer Cecil Beaton, who was known for using the glittering material in his decorative sets.
What Erdem envisioned Cecil Beaton’s Bright Young Things would wear circa 2020.
Our homage to a Cecil Beaton photograph. We’re dubbing this ‘masterpiece’ Two Women Leaving The Erdem Show (2020).
Fashion in the Renaissance Age (on the wall) versus fashion in the digital age (in the foreground).
Talk about making a grand entrance. Burberry’s show set at the cavernous Olympia London hall was epic and featured two grand pianos.
Riccardo Tisci, who cited India as one of his inspirations, featured sari drapes on trench coats at Burberry.
Guests to the Burberry show walked home with a silk twill scarf and a matching pouch that was stamped with the show date.
Seat mates at JW Anderson: Paul Hameline and Doetzen Kroes.
Bumped into a familiar face on the FROW at JW Anderson. (If you can’t tell, that’s +65 style star Mae Tan).
Kaia Gerber sported some major shoulder action at JW Anderson.
We’re calling this gilded JW Anderson top the “Little Mermaid look”.
JW Anderson was all about the GBC – a.k.a. the Great Big Coat – for Fall.
Halpern always puts us in the mood to party.
Milliner Stephen Jones feted his 40th year in the millinery business with a soiree at his Covent Garden store that saw him reissuing some of his favourite archival designs.
Stephen Jones who creates headpieces for brands like Thom Browne, Moschino and Dior, among others, and is definitely a man who wears many hats.
Model Erin O’Connor was among the guests at Stephen Jones’ mad hatter’s party.
The atmosphere before the Tommy Hilfiger show gave us a flashback to the Knight Rider.
Dance choreographer Parris Goebel made a surprise appearance on the Tommy Hilfiger catwalk.