“You have a better life if you wear impressive clothes” – Vivienne Westwood
Having joined John Rocha on work experience in November 2010 for a wonderful week of design, sewing and sketching, I was kindly invited to his fall/winter 2011 fashion show at London Fashion Week (LFW).
LFW fall/winter 2011 was a collection of 65 runways and 45 presentations over 6 days with British designers reaching a broader audience for the first time using digital technology.
Somerset House LFW AW/11
Sat Feb 19…I arrived on the 8:40 flight to London on my very first LFW experience and went straight to my hotel just metres from the hub of LFW Somerset House. I could not believe that in a few hours I would be experiencing a dream that I have had since the age of eight.
As soon as I stepped outside the hotel I was struck by visions of orange hair, ostrich coats and sky high heels.
As I entered the courtyard of Somerset House, I stood still looking at the big black tent with a large screen on the outside displaying all the previous shows from this season. A shiny black Mercedes pulled up in the courtyard. Everybody jerked their head to see the TV personality and co-star of Gok Wan’s show ‘Gok’s fashion fix’ Brix Smith-Start step out. Dressed in a grey suede and fur gilet with a tartan skirt and elbow length black leather gloves, she embraced the trend of LFW with burst of colour and the most overheard new fashion terminology of the week? “BTK” below the knee.
She was so sweet and meeting her was a great start to my fashion week.
As I walked into the Somerset House “fashion mode” BFC show space for the John Rocha show I was surprised by how small the runway was. The room filled with lines and lines of photographers and stressed PR people trying to get people seated while John Rocha’s DJ son Max set the atmosphere with strong beats. The show eventually started, not on time of course as that would be downright unfashionable. As the models strutted down the runway passing Vogue on the front row, the atmosphere was electrifying. The models look was fresh faced and real with hair finally chopped. The vintage collection was outstanding, textiles rich in quality and texture. Too many favourites to mention.
When the show was over I made my way across town to the Paddington Basin venue for the Jonathan Saunders collection. The venue was surrounded by glass with enormous round lamps down the middle of the runway. This was one of my favorite collections. His prints were bright and vibrant, perfect for winter with strong pencil-skirt silhouettes and belted suits, the collection was refreshing in comparison to this season’s trends. When the show ended I saw photographers climbing over each other to get a photo of a particular person. I ran over to see who it was. It was Olivia Palermo dressed in a black corseted dress and beige cardigan. I could not believe it. I ran over to her and got a picture. It was a perfect end to a perfect day.
John Rocha AW/11
Sun Feb 20……The next day I went to the Richard Nicoll show. I had met him in September at the Manolo for Liberty launch.
As I entered the venue I was greeted by a champagne and food bar. In true fashion the champagne bar was crowded and the food bar was left alone. His moth inspired show had tops with the Latin names of rare moth species embellished with Swarovski jewels.
To top it all off Brix Smith Start came up to me and told me she Looooved…. my hat. It was amazing!
Richard Nicoll and Gavin Norton LFW AW/11
Mon Feb 21…. This was my last day sadly. David Koma was the first designer on that morning at Somerset House. He showed patent leather dresses with polka dot faces and a large amount of colorful fur. I loved the polka dots. They are my favorite trend for next season. Holly Fulton started right after David’s show. She showed a 70’s glam show full of graphic prints and silk flowing dresses.
After the show I saw a tall skinny woman dressed in white. I soon realized it was my style icon, the socialite Daphne Guinness who is featured in many designers’ shows and ad campaigns. I walked straight over to her as she was talking to the editor-in-chief of British Vogue. I tapped her on the back and asked for a photo. She agreed and leaned in and pouted to the camera. I was in complete shock at this moment.
Daphne Guinness and Gavin Norton LFW AW/11
On finally to the Burberry show at Kensington Gardens which was digitally streamed to the largest audience ever including for the first time the giant screens in piccadily circus. This show is a real A list celebrity event so I stood outside and watched the “beautiful” people walk in through the pool of photographers. Suddenly a black car pulled up, door opened and out came a woman with a bob haircut. Cameras flashed either side of her. It was the editor-in-chief of American Vogue Anna Wintour. As she walked past I screamed her name as loud as I could. She stopped for a moment, looked back at me and waved. My heart stopped. It was the perfect end and topped off my dream weekend.
Roll on my next fashion week experience.
GN
Filed under: Anna Wintour, Autumn Winter 2011, Brix Smith Start, Burberry, Daphne Guinness, David Koma, Fashion, Gavin Norton, Hilary Alexander, Holly Fulton, John Rocha, Jonathan Saunders, London Fashion Week, Olivia Palermo, Richard Nicoll, Style, Vogue, Anna Wintour, Autumn Winter 2011, Brix Smith Start, Burberry, Daphne Guinness, David Koma, Hilary Alexander, Holly Fulton, John Rocha, Jonathan Saunders, Olivia Palermo, Richard Nicoll, Vogue
Gavin Norton 