Out of world’s four big fashion capitals London holds the reputation of the craziest one. From Gilles Deacon’s nightmarish silk bats and Ashish’s mock shopping bags to Vivienne Westwood’s zombie make up London Fashion Week was once again wonderfully eccentric and avant-garde. And if you have a look at what the fashion crowd at LFW shows are wearing you will understand why London can afford to be so quirky: they will actually buy and wear all of it.

The most talked-about show was Burberry, not just because it is so British, but also because Christopher Bailey made yet another truly beautiful collection. It is very feminine and dreamy with lots of pastel colours, lace, soft cashmere and fine embellishment. One of the most eccentric showpieces was a see-through jacket worn by Cara Delavigne on the catwalk.

The biggest star was definitely Tom Ford whose show brought a bit of Milan glamour to London Fashion Week. There were some amazing mini leather skirts and tight-fitting biker jackets, but also some to die for mosaic style bejewelled sexy dresses that were literally glowing on the mirrored catwalk.

Florals were the central motif for many designers from Christopher Kane who made a theme out of it and created a cutting-edge collection to Mulberry’s classic elegance inspired by English gardens. But while Kane was exploring photosynthesis and similarities of female anatomy and flower, and Mary Katrantzou, Preen and Peter Pilotto turned it into a colourful geometrical and fractal abstraction, John Rocha and Temperley used the pattern in order to create wonderfully romantic dresses. Jonathan Saunders, Eudon Choi, House of Holland, Mathew Williamson and Paul Smith also used allot of floral prints for their Spring/Summer 2014 collections.

Simone Rocha used flower-embroidered fabrics but also allot of silk, cotton and tulle with pearl detailing for her ultra-modern and yet very romantic collection. The definition of her style is femininity with a twist, for she always puts something in the “wrong” way, to put it in her own words.

Roksanda Ilincic offered slightly different definition of femininity with perfectly cut geometric forms and neon colours, while Michael van der Ham worked with printed silk and patchwork to create a delightful collection of evening dresses.

However, two of the shows were not only visually exciting but also political and somewhat controversial.  Vivienne Westwood continued to deal with the problem of climate change and organised a performance by Lily Cole prior to the show. The collection was inspired by nature and features some beautiful floral print dresses, as well as her signature tartan fabric and a slogan “Climate Revolution” printed on T-shirts and caps. After the show she stated that people should buy fewer clothes and invest in the world rather than in fashion.

Ashish also contemplated on consumerism and made a witty remark by making mock shopping bags embellished with sequins. They are mimicking Tesco, Marks & Spencer and no-name stripped plastic bags, and his wordplay prints “Disco” and “S&M” made the fashion crowd and LFW laugh out loud. He also made an agreement with Coca-Cola and used their logo on shirts and bags. His newest collection redefined grunge by combining ripped jeans with sequins and ethnic details. Bing inspired by both American pop culture and Arabian nights, he cleverly contrasted east and west. The show had an effective climax when black and model walked out hand in hand with crowns on their heads looking like urban king and queen, head to toe in sequins and holding shopping bags.   

From Burberry’s luxurious glamour to Ashish’s street fashion all the shows were very much Londonesque, however, there are two labels in particular that are the real embodiment of that distinctive London style one can only see in London. You can’t miss it with Fashion East which promotes emerging designers and this time showed allot of quirky slogans, crazy colour mixing and adorable child-like prints, while Giles went dark this season inspired by bats and Instagram and printing Glen Luchford’s unpublished fashion photos from 90`s all over beautiful long summer dresses.

Image credits: http://www.theupcoming.co.uk/