Fashion Week
S/S 2011

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Day 1

Cooperative Designs Maria Francesca Pepe

Day 2

Mary Katranzou Margaret Howell Antonio Berardi Vivienne Westwood Red Label Richard Nicholl Kinder Aggugini Acne

Day 3

Peter Pilotto Mark Fast Christopher Kane Roksanda Ilincic Giles Pringle of Scotland

Day 4

Marios Schwab Jonathan Saunders Heikki Salonen Simone Rocha Felicity Brown Burberry Prorsum

Cooperative Designs

Inspired by Kenneth Anger's 'Hollywood Babylon', which details a glamorously debauched Hollywood film industry of the 1920s, Cooperative Designs brought a taste of the Roaring Twenties to the Groucho Club for its latest presentation. Models draped themselves on chaise lounges, dressed in bright textural knitted kimonos, kaftans and harem pants, while a pianist, clad in a hand-knitted black and white flapper dress, played Jazz Age songs beside them. Echoing the decadence of the era's Art Deco parties, fabrics were luxurious, proportions were sumptuously relaxed and colours were rich and deep. Words: Apphia Michael

Cooperative Designs

Maria Francesca Pepe

This season it's all about passion and love. In keeping with this, Maria Francesca Pepe's new collection, 'Amor Los Une', is based on the sixteenth-century jewellery engravings that lovers used to pledge their affection for each other after death. Jewellery - as ever the main feature of Pepe's designs - took a softer direction. Slim chains constructed to form skeleton-like dresses over light chiffon garments and the use of crystals and figurative elements, such as giant crosses and carved cuffs in gold, further emphasised the idea of ancient love as a medium for Pepe's expression. AM

Maria Francesca Pepe

Mary Katranzou

Mary Katranzou must have been poring over issues of Wallpaper* and World of Interiors in the inspirational prep for her collection, which featured photographic prints of interiors ranging from the modernist to the grand on her sculpted cocktail dresses. Chandeliers made up necklaces and a lampshade a crinoline skirt, while our favourite was a modernist skyline from a penthouse suite printed onto a pannier-hipped sheath in wenge wood brown and Aegean blue. Elsewhere, grand gilt-edged salons featured on bodices, and fifties Palm Springs scenes on crystal-strewn shift dresses, with each print meticulously engineered to suit the form.

Mary Katranzou

Margaret Howell

A soundtrack of 1940's Shanghainese and French jazz music set the tone for Margaret Howell's S/S collection, which had a pleasant summer holiday vibe. English boating hats and sandals were paired with crisp white shirts and sundresses in khaki and camel tones, which soon gave way to blues, oranges and whites. The show ended with a Parisian twist, with petite navy dresses and matching blazers. Cuts were loose and feminine, with an emphasis on light fabrics and summery knits. AM

Margaret Howell

Antonio Berardi

Antonio Berardi delivered flouncy skirts and divine evening dresses in the palest buttermilk, oyster, and cerise organza silk. They flared from graphic bodice tops to airy ballerina skirts, and while some dripped with fabric flowers, others were more trimmed, like the linen skirt with beautiful silver inserts. That wasn't all; Berardi also revealed sleek tailoring, with polar white crepe flared trousers and cut-away drape jackets, paired with sheer dickie shirts. First class all round.

Antonio Berardi

Vivienne Westwood Red Label

The mood at Vivienne Westwood Red Label was playful. Wearable, flirty, chic and lady-like were the buzzwords of the day and the fact that the opening song for the show was 'On The Street Where You Live' from the My Fair Lady, was no coincidence; the transitional elements of the collection fittingly ranged from girly frilly dresses to more tailored suit pieces. AM

Vivienne Westwood Red Label

Richard Nicholl

As an Australian, Nicholl has an acute view on Brit sub-cultures. This season he tuned in to David Bowie's 'Thin White Duke' period, via the late seventies skinhead movement, with his fierce-looking line-up of quiff-headed models. Long-pleat chiffon skirts were topped with sculpted bomber jackets, or sheer tops with pleated necklines, framing angular faces. The maxi silhouette was played with with aplomb, while pleats also formed caped backs on fluttery dresses, trimmed with patent leather. Little hem swirls kicked out from linear pencil skirts in twinkly tweed - all of which made for outfits worthy of a spectacular party entrance - laced, of course, with a street savvy knowledge of music culture.

Richard Nicholl

Kinder Aggugini

There was a distinctly African flavour at Kinder Aggugini, where the collection moved from a crisp colonial silhouette with sharp tailored edges, to tribal-style outfits with looser fabrics and softer movement. Prints were bold, fabrics were draped over the body in a loose fashion, and ends were knotted and tied, as if to secure the seams. The designer was influenced by Scottish explorer Mungo Park's 1805 colonial account, 'Travels in the Interior Districts of Africa', and his own transformation from white colonial observer to an African in soul. AM

Kinder Aggugini

Acne

Over at Acne’s salon show, which took place in Princess Margaret’s former apartment in Kensington Palace, the mood was distinctly modern, despite the ornate and historic venue. The collection moved in clean colour blocks from cream to red, navy to grey and then black, only occasionally punctuated by textures such as the python leather (as seen on a few dresses and wispy chiffon trousers), with oversized beadwork, which provided an alternative to studs. The brand’s staple wedge was revamped with a new thong-like feature, no doubt soon to be emulated on a high street near you. AM

Acne

Peter Pilotto

The talented duo delivered a demure collection of fluttery silks and chiffons, with a gentle pixellated print. The silhouette was soft, with mid-length pleat skirts belted over silk shirts, playing with transparency. Ties, drapes and tucks shaped the dresses, which slipped over the form, offering a much needed respite from the bodycon styles that have dominated fashion of late. Sporty cotton twill gilets gave a modern edge to the picture. The vision was of genteel woman with natural elegance.

Peter Pilotto

Mark Fast

Fast has a way of making the most delicate and intricate of knits super sexy and tough in his dresses, thanks to clever contouring with twists and cobwebbing. The designer has clearly taken a shine to Tropicana this season, sending out flame red and flouro green tube dresses with flirtatious silk fringe hems that swirled around the legs in carnivalesque style. Far from camp, these pieces were tempered by a good dose of his Canadian goth spirit.

Mark Fast

Christopher Kane

Kane catapulted the past into the future by reinventing the traditional ladies dress code of pleated knee-length skirt, shell top and jacket, with techno leather lace in flouro greens, pinks and yellows. Dresses (Kane's forte) were delicate in construction, featuring flouro threads that sent ripples of colour over serpent-print chiffon tea dresses. Demure suddenly became exciting - even a little bit dangerous.

Christopher Kane

Roksanda Ilincic

This designer, now a young mother, seems permanently in love - a quality that wafted through her light-as-a-feather collection of draped lilac silk jackets, slouched over long, twisted and draped back gowns. There were sheer, trimmed t-shirts and cocktail dresses in the palest of greys. The latter boasted gentle flounces of flouro pink techno silk over bodice sheaths, with her trademark zippers and taped seams. Yes, flouro is a strong trend for Spring Summer – the future is indeed bright.

Roksanda Ilincic

Giles

Giles made his return to London a bold, slick and fun one with his womanly legion of models, complete with rich red lips and glossy curls. There were 1970s-tinged hot pants and motif sweaters; top stitch cotton sundresses with button through skirts; and silk party dresses with orchid flower prints, pierced by sequin stamens. It was all a little naughty, a little saucy, including his draped, tobacco-coloured long dresses, which dripped with tiny beads, and his triumphant evening wear, which combined print corsets and swathes of silk. The Giles woman likes to be chicly contoured.

Giles

Pringle of Scotland

For Pringle of Scotland's Spring Summer look, classic Scottish references were interplayed with a strong message of minimalism. Hints of feathers and romantic fringing on edges brought to life a predominantly clean and streamlined silhouette. Interesting highlights were the appearance of the revamped kilt in a light mesh fabric; graphic, wide ribbing on the knits; and crochet patterns, created using traditional Scottish techniques.

Pringle of Scotland

Marios Schwab

Marios Schwab is a man with a darkly erotic imagination, which subtly shows through his sense of juxtaposition and intense detail: a slash, a drape and a contrast trim. For spring, this translated into beautiful silk slip dresses in pale pink and winter green, with fine lace hems, inserts and delicate multi straps, which crisscrossed nude backs. Leather pieces, like a shift dress or cropped jacket, were sultry too, worn by his shag-haired, kohl-eyed Alison Mosshart types. And his reinvented boudoir slip dress was inflected with a Courtney Love spirit, with faded tattoo prints and talisman markings on leather.

Marios Schwab

Jonathan Saunders

Clean cut chic is Mr Saunders' forte. This he delivered with crisp cotton short-sleeve shirts belted into swirl skirts in fresh shades like peppermint and tangerine. There was also a healthy dose of his trademark prints, like an abstract camouflage in latte and orange. And his flyaway pieces had body, thanks to clever corsetry concealed beneath pretty sheer dresses that spoke of summer days.

Jonathan Saunders

Heikki Salonen

Fashion East is celebrating its 10th anniversary and the founder of this philanthropic project to support new talent, Lulu Kennedy, deserves great cheer. The line up starred Heikki Salonen, with his wholesome, raw-edge tailored shorts, suits and ruffle trim shift dresses in oatmeal and dove grey. Another newcomer was Simone Rocha, daughter of John, whose collection included modernist tailoring, such as cut-out knee and arm panels on ivory cotton suiting, as well as layers of techno t-shirts and slips. The standout, however, was Felicity Brown, an RCA textile graduate who creates handcrafted and hand-dyed silk dresses out of mille-feuille layers of fabric. Party dresses bloomed into furls of silks at the neckline, tracing down around the torso in tonal shades of rose pink, emerald or sapphire. In a word: gorgeous.

Heikki Salonen

Simone Rocha

Felicity Brown

Burberry Prorsum

Christopher Bailey knows about topping a look, and his line up of outerwear was perfect. There were slim, neat trenches banded in black leather, with quilt inserts; super supple biker jackets in suede and black; and python designs with rivets scattered over the shoulder for real impact. The motocross flavour also revved up leather mini skirts and the skinniest of leather jeans. For evening, there were rose-and-layered-gold satin dresses and draped leopard chiffon mini dresses, fastened with leather bondage straps. Tennis stars Andy Murray and Serena Williams looked on with admiration. Game, set and match to Bailey.