Perhaps it’s because this is such a special year for the UK, with the Olympics and the Queen’s diamond jubilee, that designers have been touched by our rich history in the AW collections. This is a great time to be in London, and the designers at February’s AW12 fashion week certainly agreed.

Major trend for AW is turning back time to the traditional. Checks, dogstooth and tweed were showcased at several big players, with the heritage brand Burberry and of course, Dame Viv, holding the flag high.
This was also adopted by Corrie Neilsen, and KTZ who did a take on the 2012 kilt; Clements Ribeiro and PPQ who also dipped their toe in the plaid water and flashed accessories as opposed to full looks at their shows.

Corrie was my first glimpse of the tartan trend at her packed out show at Somerset House on Friday; She chose to champion her Scottish ancestry by using bold black, white and red tartans coupled with billowing trains, as well as her trademark peplum waists and ladylike necklines. Although it sounds extravagant, it is altogether wearable.

Kokon to Zai was all about the layering; Belts, necklace, berets, legwarmers, clutch bags, earrings and bling… the amount of detailing that went into this show was phenomenal and I loved it! The menswear and womenswear had the usual punky androgynous feeling, with boxy jackets for both boys n girls. Pieces were defined by belts, heavy shoes and the occasional sprinkle of sparkles.

Opening the show with all-plaid black and white looks, the designer layered different sized tartans over one another creating an artistic array of oversized shirts and wide-sleeved, bomber jackets for men, alongside long skirts paired with wrap around blazers cinched at the waist with heavy leather belts for women. It was big checks over little checks over medium checks. Red and yellow also made an appearance, coupled with contrasting linings, and my ultimate favourite was the sophisticated red tartan sequined twin set.

More traditional tartans were spied at Clements Ribeiro and Vivienne Westwood Red Label, who used blue to shake hers up a bit. As one would expect from Ms Westwood, this was far from the norm- big was beautiful!

On the Burberry stage, we were transported back to the country estates, complete with tweed caps and cord in subdued tones- olive, burgundy, plum, mustard and brown. All you need to complete this look is a small pair of Miss Marple reading glasses.

With so much to choose from, it’s almost a shame we have to endure SS…! But I am actually looking forward to the Mulberry and Holly Fulton ice cream tones for spring, so actually the tweed can wait!

By Sara Darling