FAULT‘s fashion team hit the catwalk shows and backstage at London Fashion Week (Feb ’14) to bring you our favourite pieces from the Autumn / Winter 2014 shows. Stay connected – on Twitter, Facebook or right here on FAULT Online – for our round-up of the designers and trends that we have our eye on.

 

Preen by Thornton Bregazzi

This season’s Preen collection was a real smorgasbord of references; Star Wars detailing, metallic fabrics, Victorian silhouettes and prints that recalled the kaleidoscopic graphics of Eley Kishimoto. The look was strong; neon in palette and merging these influences with every look, creating a runway woman who appeared clearly creative and clever with it. Styling the show can have been no mean feat, but experimental proportions balanced each other beautifully, retaining an easiness and effortless luxury. The lightness of the lace and metallics allowed for a loose shape and complex layering of print and colour. Some of the totally neon orange looks could have seemed too much but, amidst the coolly intellectual collage of the other looks, they were bold and high-impact.

 

Temperley

For AW14, Temperley London looked abroad, using ethnic prints and an Oriental-influenced palette of china blue and pale white, with bursts of tribal print and folk embroidery. This felt like a bit of a revival of the boho-chic that was so popular when Temperley first burst onto the scene in the early 2000s, but there was a sharpness of silhouette and cut that launched the collection right up to date. Cut at the waist, with strong prints and beautifully intricate detailing, these looks were bold and unusually utilitarian, whilst maintaining the glamour and femininity that the label is so renowned for. The collection unfolded nicely, with heavier evening looks dispersed throughout so that it managed to end not in predictably darker night shades but in light peach and blush pink, with a final look in palest ivory. Temperley knows her strengths, and she has mastered the art of playing to them without endlessly repeating herself.

 

Topshop Unique

The Topshop Unique show always offers a wide range of influences and looks, and AW14 was no different. The majority of the collection was rendered in a cool palette of concrete grey, electric blue and stony black. The look was loose, effortless and- as is always the case- achingly cool. Jackets and coats were worn with sleeves slipping off the shoulder whilst skirts were, for the most part, short or sheer. Everything from jumpers to jackets to fur tabards were belted in at the waist and trousers were slouchy and rolled at the cuffs. The collection may have benefited from a more strict adherence to the original colour palette but a mid-section in camel and taupe detracted nothing from the strength of the shapes and silhouettes on offer.

 

Vivienne Westwood Red Label       

Vivienne Westwood has become a true hallmark of British heritage and quality and her AW14 collection was a statement of this. Restrained in silhouette and styling with minimal, everyday makeup and a relatively paired-back palette of muted grey, blue and beige, the collection was given punch with pops of tartan and scarlet. Westwood appropriated her own archive, with references to past collections in the mini skirts, double-breasted suits, crinoline shapes and sweetheart lapels. This was a refined luxury; a statement of power and purpose with Westwood’s habitual attention to detail and a focus on flattering the woman above all else. Amidst the theatrics of other shows this season, this show had refreshingly little to prove. Westwood is an effortless master of her craft.

 

Mary Kantrazou

Mary Katrantzou’s AW14 collection was a beautiful tribute to symbols; from heraldic emblems to Art Deco patterns, love-hearts and men’s-room signs. Layered intricately over simple column shapes, with fabric in muted but rich colours draped and pleated with a careful simplicity. Katrantzou’s star has itself been long-rising in the fashion industry and with this collection, she managed to affirm her design aesthetic once again whilst side-stepping the digital print technique that threatened to define her brand. The clothes in this show possessed what has always been essential to her work- a staggering craftsmanship that she fuses with her thoroughly modern vision. She simply knows what the woman of today wants to wear and, season upon season, she delivers it with an unexpected twist. The symbols and signs so deeply interwoven into this show will no doubt filter out in accessories and prints over the coming months, whilst the clothes had a classic shape and subtlety that will do well on the red carpet. Yet another triumph for Katrantzou.

 

Jonathon Saunders

Jonathan Saunders’ AW14 collection was a tour de force of jarring print, colour and texture. It kind of felt like it shouldn’t have worked but somehow he nailed it. The sheer maximalist intent of the collection brought a raw energy to the runway, with oversized detailing in collars and sleeves allowing for an awkwardness of proportions that played into the extremity of each look. Loose shapes and clean cuts balanced out the volume of print and colour, whilst the styling played off fuchsia and raspberry shades with cool camel and grey. By experimenting with textures early into the collection, the incorporation of a wide range of textiles- from furs and wet-look fabric, to textured wool and quilted silk- did not feel uneven or excessive.  In short, this collection was complex but clean, with a beautiful attention to detail and fresh experiments with textile and pattern. Saunders continues to refine his aesthetic, building upon his label signatures but not conforming to them.

 

Ashish

Ashish’s shows are always full of energy and his AW14 collection proved to be no different. In what can always be expected to be an electrifying, flamboyant affair, he didn’t let us down. A pink disney-girl dress complete with sparkling tiara opened the show – setting the bar for the colour theme throughout. The glittering show was a love affair with pink, baby blues, gold, black and holographic silver. Blinged-up, form-fitting tracksuits made their appearance, alongside ‘princess-style’, full-skirted gowns, ruffled and ragged denim looks, plus jazzy sparkled jogging bottoms and bomber jackets. Ashish is an expert at taking the ordinary and making it extraordinary and in a sea of minimalism, seeing a designer staying true to their aesthetic when it may not be the ‘in’ style is to be applauded. Ashish’s girls are party girls who are in love with life – what’s not to love about that?

 

Nicole Farhi

Nicole Farhi staged her A/W presentation on a Sunday morning at  29 Portland Place, a beautiful property with pastel-coloured walls and high windows. In this way, it provided the perfect setting for Farhi’s light, laid back collection. Models walked on loop, striding through the crowd in silk palazzo pants, pale pastel-coloured furs (sky blue and mint green), and minimalist separates cleanly-cut and loose-fitting. This was a relaxed luxury and it looked incredible; sophisticated and polished yet effortless and modern. Farhi has long specialised in this type of fashion- clothes that travel from home to boardroom to cocktail party- but this collection had a streak of experimentation. From coats and jackets in woven fur, to the quirkily beautiful colour palette, these clothes were eye-catching without being try-hard. And with the recent success of labels like Céline, Raf Simons and Marni, that seems to be the fashion gold for the designers and buyers of today.

 

Words by Will Ballantyne-Reid