London Fashion Week AW25 was a quieter affair this February, with many brands opting out of showing, no doubt a result of financial constraints and the difficult economic atmosphere.
But London will always remain a hub for adventurous style, the rebellious little sister to New York and Milan whose creativity knows no bounds. And the designers who did showcase their upcoming collections certainly didn’t disappoint.
5 London Fashion Week trends a fashion editor will be copying immediately
High Romance
Only Richard Quinn could make us want to wish summer will be frightfully short lived so we can get stuck into cold weather again. The show’s setting was a winter wonderland that looked like you’d stumbled onto the set of one of your favourite romance movies.
The ensembles followed suit with sequins, corsages and silhouettes that leaned away from the everyday. This is fantasy dressing at its best.
Romance was also high up the agenda at Di Petsa who sent models strutting down the runway in draped finery clutching red roses and a bride accompanied by five strapping young men in skimpy white underwear.
Cool Girl Energy
London is always seen as the slightly more rebellious fashion week, leaning more towards anarchy than pristine Paris or neat New York. And labels such as Sinead Gorey and Dilara Findikoglu’s thoroughly lived up to expectation.
The former sent models down the runway of a car park behind Oxford Circus munching on chicken burgers (KFC partnered with the designer for the show), smoking and wearing flash-fleshing micro shorts.
Meanwhile Turkish designer Dilara Findikoglu’s collection was aptly entitled “Venus from Chaos.”
The British Eccentric
Burberry never fails to hit with its covetable coats and knits anyone would be thrilled to wear once the nights start drawing back in.
This season national treasure Richard E. Grant walked and the entire collection evoked weekends in the countryside, sipping red wine in stately living rooms. Bliss.
Paul Costelloe’s show at the Waldorf Astoria evoked similar feelings of grandeur and excess with quirky British touches and equestrian inspired leather goods.
Meanwhile, Toga sought inspiration from photographer William Eggleston and the way he flawlessly deconstructed formality and masculinity.
Hitchcock Influences
The seminal film director and his auteur aesthetic could be felt on the runways of Huishan Zhang and Emilia Wickstead who looked to classics such as The Birds and the ultimate Hitchcockian heroine (Tippi Hedrin) with their elegant silhouettes and pops of 60s magic.
More cinematic references popped up at Huishan Zhang whose models looked exuberant yet utterly elegant. We spotted Valley of the Dolls touches such as doll-like lashes and thick sweeping eyeliner too.
Exaggerated Silhouettes
Harris Reed never fails to deliver drama and typically the first show on the schedule, it sets the tone for those that follow. (Bonus points for the rousing Florence Pugh performance that kicked off proceedings.)
On the menu for autumn/winter this year: nipped in waists, exaggerated necklines and a whole lot of corsetry (also spied at Dilara Findikoglu.)
