London Fashion Week SS13: The Ones to Watch

Hi guys,

Let the write-ups from my first day at London Fashion Week begin! My first show of the day was the Vauxhall Fashion Scout Ones to Watch. I always enjoy this show and the chance to check out the new and upcoming talent. This year the Ones to Watch were: Helen Van Rees, Hana Cha, Charlotte Simpson, and Ming Pin Tien.

My two favourites were Helen Van Rees and Ming Pin Tien:



Helen Van Rees won my unofficial award for best use of cereal boxes during London Fashion Week! I can imagine constructing some of her headpieces at home with weetabix packets! In all seriousness though, I really loved her collection. It was inspired by Chanel tweeds but for the modern age:three-dimensional weaved cubes were added to more traditional tailored pieces. And what would a fashion show be without a mental hat, eh?! I'm a sucker for old fashioned tweed, so this really had me sold. An added bonus? The pieces were made from 100% recycled materials.

I was also sold on Ming Pin Tien's collection the moment I saw the leather cage armour-type bodices and oversized jacket. The whole collection was both feminine and wearable, and architectural and extreme at the same time. I would have worn several pieces from this collection, and felt like a warrior-woman whilst I was doing it - I predict big things for this designer! Sadly not a single one of my photos for this show came out, but you can see and read more about Ming Pin Tien's collection on the Vauxhall Fashion Scout website.

I would love to know what you guys have thought about London Fashion Week so far: are there any trends that have got you excited? Any pieces or designers you particuarly love? I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Love Tor xx

VFS Ones to Watch: Keep Watching!!

I dont think i've ever hated my camera more than I did at the VFS Ones to Watch show yesterday, when it refused to take photos of the moving models, or did take the photos, but they came out like a formula one racer blur. It was hands down the best show of my day in terms of design, innovation, and pure spectacle.

There were four designers: Dean Quinn, Ada Zanditon, Hermione de Paula, Marko Mitanovski and they were all fabulous, but the one that made me stand out of my seat determined to get some photos now, dammit, was Marko Mitanovski.

Earier in the day I was explaining to a friend skeptical about the fashion industry and the "pointlessness of the catwalk shows due to the unwearability of the clothes" that they aren't all built to be wearable; that the best catwalk shows are those that seem like a great theatrical preformance art piece. That make you gasp at what can be achieved with fabric and creativity. This was that show, as the models paraded down the runway to gothic string versions of Nirvana hits.

My photos are terrible, but at least if gives you an idea of what it was all about:

The models hair had been fashioned to look like antlers, their faces were deathly white apart from the additional of sculptural plastic (?) eyebrows and crazy-long false eyelashes. And the clothes? The clothes were amazing! Oversized collars and shoulders and ruffs, leather everywhere, manipulated into shapes I didn't know it could make. The whole collection was almost entirely black but it still had a richness and texture that you wouldnt believe could come from one colour. And it was eerie: each model was wearing claw like leather gloves and the haunting music got louder and louder.
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It was perfect: everything a good fashion show should be. You can read more about Markus and the other ones to watch winner (particularly check out Ada Zinderman whose geometric shapes you have to see to believe!) on the vauxhall fashion scout website.

Love Tor xx
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NB - There were lots of block colours (blues, purples, apple greens) at Ashley Isham in the morning in drapey floor length gowns with beading detail. Perfect for evening wear. But the fact that the collection didn't inspire me very much coupled with the absolutely appalling pictures I took of the show means that I wont be writing a full post about it.