Erdem A/W 2019 London Fashion Week Women's

Erdem a/w 2019 fashion show — Erdem A/W 2019.

(Image credit: Jason Lloyd-Evans)

Mood board: From the works of EM Forster to Henry James, the literary canon is populated with novels that explore the results of colliding cultures. Puritanism and Europeanism. Metropolis morals and countryside ethics. Imagined narratives are often the basis of Erdem Moralioglu’s collection, and for A/W 2019, he was taken by the tale of Principessa Orietta Doria Pamphilj, the head of one of Italy’s greatest noble families, who died at the age of 78 in 2000. She had lived in an 1000 room Palazzo in Rome, and spent much of her life with her English naval officer husband, dedicated to upkeeping her family’s property, which included a castle in Apulia and an abbey near Portofino. His collection was inspired by an imagined visit the Principessa took to London in the 1960s, and featured a collusion of grand jacquard dresses and conservative twinset cardigans, short dresses sparkling with sequins and ostrich feathers or featuring inbuilt capes.

Finishing touches: Orietta’s father was anti Fascist, and during Mussolini’s reign her family’s palace was stormed by his supporters. Her father even had to go into hiding in 1943, and Orietta and her mother disguised their identities by dying their hair black. Dark feathered fascinators echoed this physical change, while net veils had both a concealing quality and Catholic severity. Knee high snakeskin boots in pop colour shades added a soupcon of 1960s.

Best in show: A black brocade suit was suitably luxurious, while an emerald silk dress with bow details and cut-out panels was demure yet daring. We’re sure Orietta would approve.