LONDON: The ongoing London Fashion Week has displayed a riot of colour with designers taking inspiration from nature, sportswear and eclectic patterns. The collections offer an array of glamorous gowns and sleek casual wear adorned with hand-crafted details.
Burberry, Erdem and Marchesa showcased their Spring/Summer 2015 lines that were inspired by plants, flowers and botany. “It’s just a very romantic, feminine season and it’s great to look at the world through the joyous lens of the great clothes we are seeing,” luxury department store Neiman Marcus’ fashion director, Ken Downing, commented.
“Pattern-mixing is also prevalent. It can be wide stripes with narrow stripes, big flowers with small flowers, or many times, mixing stripes with flowers or even animal prints together,” he said.
Designers Richard Nicoll, Jasper Conran and British retailer Topshop were heavily influenced by sportswear, showcasing hooded anoraks, jersey dresses and cycling tops in colours ranging from daring primaries to chalky pastels.
“Sporty is still a trend; ever since Céline ushered it in a few seasons ago, it has been going strong. You see a lot of editors in sneakers and track pants and we are still seeing that on the runway,” said Eva Chen, editor-in-chief of Lucky Magazine.
Designers also embraced a relaxed attitude toward dressing up, with wide-legged trousers, loosely-fitted sheer blouses and voluminous floral dresses. They paired them with cropped jackets, silky trench coats and flat shoes along with hand-finished details.
They are also focusing more on accessories such as handbags and shoes as luxury department stores look to beef up their offerings after seeing a significant rise in demand. “The demand for women’s footwear over the past five years has been exceptional, so much so that we have recently opened a new floor dedicated to shoes,” department store Harrods’ Fashion Director, Helen David, said.
Accessories designer Anya Hindmarch, who is known for quirky presentations of her luxurious handbags, said her business was seeing growth all over the world, particularly in Japan, the United States and Hong Kong, and that she expected to outperform the luxury market over the next few years.
“The product is really bubbling at the moment, so we are having a really great time,” she said at her show featuring spinning neon teacups and glow-in-the-dark skeletons. “We are still a brand that is growing, so there is always opportunity. There is lots to do and it’s a really exciting time,” she said.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 18th, 2014.
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