LFW: Meadham Kirchoff & Mark Fast

MEADHAM KIRCHOFF

I'm really loving all the bandage body con dresses that have been all over the runways this fall - they remind me of mummies, in a totally good way, wrapped and textured. There was a great one in the Meadham Kirchoff collection, and some really interesting torn, ragged shirts..

MARK FAST

This is how little black dresses should be. I'm coveting all the amazing knitwear (def in black) from London Fashion Week. The dresses shown at Mark Fast were all short, tight and laddered in the best possible way.

Source: Style.Com

LFW: Julien Macdonald, Josh Goot

JOSH GOOT

Our antipodean wonder boy that is Josh Goot showed a standout collection; retro-futuristic and inspired by geology and geography - which worked amazingly, although I'm biased as I'm a bit of a geo nerd (bad habit of spotting and naming cloud formations, karst landscapes etc, oh dear. Obviously I loved his cloud/sky prints from a few seasons ago). Anyhow, it kicked off with subtle colour blocking in neutral tones, then moved on to some amazing pieces that used map contour lines - the emphasized and flattered the body lines no end.

There were some standout layered and gathered body con dresses - amazing texture. Particularly love the beigey pink..
The highlight however was definitely the final looks - mind blowing prints combining the beauty of sedimentary layers with the colours and patterns of rock and minerals. Amazing.

JULIEN MACDONALD

Perfect black collection from Macdonald. The dresses are insane, starting off with the conservative(ish) strapless on Magda, then moving to some mind blowing knits (particularly love the texture and tactility of the third).
The separates outfits were even better however. Sheer, knitted, asymmetric tops; insane jackets (spiked shoulders anyone? I'm keen); cropped leather pants and unzipped skirts. Rounded off with some amazing booties.
And the furs just blew me away. Words cannot describe the first look on Karlie. The movement in the long grey fur, layered over a patterned mesh dress. It frames her face like a mane. If your going to do a one-tone outfit, do this.

Source: Style.com

LFW: Peter Pilotto, Ossie Clark, Marios Schwab

PETER PILOTTO

I've always been a sucker for a good star print - especially galaxy and solar system print (a lot harder to find than your standard and now somewhat iconic star print from Chanel's Spring 08 collection. Peter Pilotto did an amazing galaxy print for his Winter 08 collection, and has developed it further for the collection he just showed in London for 09. Also love the use of twisting and draping - takes it to another level.

OSSIE CLARK

I found most of the Ossie Clark collection underwhelming, maybe thats why these dresses really stood out. The strength is the simplicity and fluidity - the movement of the pieces (even captured in a still shot) looks amazing.

MARIOS SCHWAB

Although it was a winter collection, its the short pieces that really shined for me in Marios Schwab show. The neckline and shapes of the first dress are great, and the folded, crisp white origami-like quality of the second dress is my favorite (and reminds me of one of my all time favorite Stella McCartney dresses). I don't think I need to explain that tantalizingly soft blue fur.

Source: Style.com

LFW: Luella & Louise Goldin

LUELLA

One of the highlights of London Fashion Week for me is always Luella Bartley - her show is one of the main ones I count down to. Luella's Fall 09 collection continued her iconic BritGirl look, but is somewhat more mature and tougher. Cute dresses (building on the shapes and layers of her Spring 09 collection) and youthfull details featured, as did lots of utilitarian/military details (reminiscent of her Fall 07 collection) - this new/old Luella worked well, strengthening her look and reminding us why we love what she does.

Love the gold tights and back with black and zip details. Great hats too - confederate caps, and slouchy beanies (cute, boyish, useful). The oversized military jumper dress would be insanely handy - especially those massive pockets (you almost don't need the satchel - but def want it anyway.) I also covet the tweed coat, washed out sixties hair and makeup, and the bags.

LOUISE GOLDIN

The slick black collection from Louise Goldin blew my mind. This is how all black should be done - so rich and dark, but with the subtle sheen from the leather. The dresses are the standout for me - so many amazing details; leather panels, cut outs, amazing necklines.

And she also gives us some fun with fur, sequins ans sparkle - which works so well with the foil of the black.
The coats are also really strong - quite bold silhouettes. And naturally I covet the leather pants.

Source: Style.Com

LFW: Richard Nicoll, Christopher Kane, Twenty8Twelve,

For the second season in a row I was really impressed with Richard Nicoll. The Fall 09 collection is refined and stark, yet still warm and soft - achieved I think by the use of creamy fabrics (as opposed to harsh whites) and the genius use of layering and textures. I love the strong linear elements and lingerie detailing - they really play up the contrast of structure versus softness.

And as I am a total magpie, I love the strong use of textured gold  - fun and shiny and luxe, whilst still emphasizing the structure of the pieces.

More on this linear look that I'm loving right now, Christopher Kane (as always) produced a great collection. Strong black lines on sheer fabric created the most amazing patterns and shapes - and constrast the vividness of the line with the sheer fabric. I also love the oversized sweaters he showed.

A collection that surprised was Twenty8Twelve by Sienna and Savannah Miller. The strong points for me were the tight jeans, sheer black, leather jackets and the Balmain-esque green sequin dress. The shoes rock too.

Source: Style.com

LFW: Armand Basi, Charles Anastase, Sinha-Stanic

The Armand Basi One collection showed an amazingly strong, androgynous look. Love the shapes of the boxy jackets, loose pants and tight jackets - especially the simplicity of the oversized black jumper.

Charles Anastase referred to his collection as "autobiographical" rather than retro, and I do think it steers clear of having the strained retro look. Love the fabrics (patent leather, wool, fur, sheer), the shoes (he always uses the most outrageous shoes - they complement the delicate elements of his clothes perfectly) and the makeup - the dark lip pops up again.
 I also like the combination of the sheer fabric and the shearling at Sinha-Stanic.

Source: Style.com