London Fashion Love Letters: Orschel-Read

My very dear Emmi,

This might be the last, last letter I write to you. I have been enjoying myself with your updates, especially whilst queuing to get into another catwalk show. It's such a relief to know there are other people out there (and those standing in front of and behind me) who suffer for fashion. God bless you and I pray we'll meet again in London in half a year's time.

But, before we bid farewell, I've got you Orschel-Read, the last ever show I attended this year at London Fashion Week.

When I was informed (by the PR) that Orschel-Read's SS10 piece was worn by Lady Gaga, I couldn't anticipate more for his brand new catwalk show at LFW SS11. Sadly, perhaps I was expecting for too much, the show titled "The Spy Who Becomes Me" did not quite hit the right note.

The collection toying the quintessential James Bond glamour, displaced onto an adolescent physique, fuses several manly styles, such as safari, military and playboy. Suits, jackets, coats appear in cotton and dupion silk and are paired with bamboo fibre knit and wools. Trousers are high-waisted referring back to James Bond's golden era.

Some of the silk pieces and printed shirts, I admit, are eye-pleasers.

Despite my ambivalence to Orschel-Read's collection, I find his suits and tuxes to die for.

With its fine tailoring, harsh silhouette, structural shoulders and some modern twists on the collar, all mellow into one boyish man's body. This subtle struggle from boy to man shows some real attitude implicit in the collection.

And, to view the entire collection, check out my VDO clip.

It's time to say good bye now. I hope you enjoyed your shows at LFW.

Mwah! Mwah!

Perm

London Fashion Love Letters: Sibling

Hello (again) Emmi,

You know, who say models have to be handsome? Look at these 'peeps' at the Sibling SS11 presentation at London Fashion Week.

Renowned for brightly coloured and jauntily printed knitwear, Sibling presents something no other than themselves at the Portico Room, Somerset House. The collection is in favour of a soft silhouette, light weight material and lots of eye-catching prints. And there you see, Sibling's obscene sense of humour, them mannequins with no pants on. All I could wish for is that they were human models!

But, I must say, Sibling's centrepieces for their SS11 collection are even more daring. Tracksuit tops with matching bottoms embroidered in swear words--'wanker,' 'cunt,' 'bitch,' and so on--encapsulating male anger and frustration and re-executed for the anti-gentlemen of taste and fashion sense. A chav in Mayfair, perhaps? Or, Kensington?

Just plainly rude but awesome!!

Cheers,

Perm

London Fashion Love Letters: NEWGEN MEN + FASHION EAST MEN's Installations (2)

Hi Emmi,

Departing from my beautiful boxers, I walk into Omar Kashoura's SS11 installation. This is quite jazzy with musician-models playing the trumpet and the saxophone--and some less modelesque musicians playing the electone in the background. This SS11 collection features some nicely tailored suits, shoes and accessories.

This guy, or his shoes and bag, is my favourite. It's so nice to be watching a guy when he blows, isn't it? :-9

On my way to Christopher Raeburn's installation I stumble on this.

It is a knitwear collection by Morgan Allen-Oliver, also to be matched with high-waisted shorts. It looks in next summer in London there will be jumpers and jumpers everywhere.

And, perhaps, there will be plenty of Christopher Raeburn's raincoats and macs, too! They are groundbreakingly colourful, with polka dots and some taping effect on the outside.

The installation is, more or less, like you walk into the tailor's workplace, though I'm not sure if at Raeburn's, there will be plenty of these hanging rabbit dolls.

Raeburn also includes some of his women's pieces in this presentation. Smart, eh!? Emmi, I'm sure you can do with one of these in your wardrobe.

That's all I've got to share on the NEWGEN MEN + FASHION EAST MEN's Installations.

Ciao,

Perm

London Fashion Love Letters: Prophetik

Hello Emmi,

I arrived at Somerset House to pick up our badges. I must say the fashion scene this year looks a bit messy. Perhaps London has put a little too much effort into welcoming the Pope and ignored LFW!

Anyway, I--no pun intended--ran into Henry Holland in LFW's promotional red Mercedes posing to photographers' delight. I did not have much time for this and rushed off to my first show Prophetik by Jeff Garner.

Prophetik, you know, is an 8-year-old, all sustainable fashion lifestyle brand; they have started showing in London since last February. This time, designer Jeff Garner takes inspiration from Botticelli's Venus and injects softness, innocence and sensuality into his mens-and-womenswear collection he calls "Midnight Garden".

The show started with a score by Benjamin Ellin invoking a vision of a hooded deity bathing in spotlights. Then came the pretty models, no no!, these youthful goddesses. So serene and fragile.

Thanks to the very soft silhouette, the garments, you must see them yourselves, flow so wonderfully, and these cool colour palettes of ivory, indigo, copper and coral will make anyone wearing them look so sweet and lovely!

Garner, you know, uses all-natural plant and earth-based dyes as well as sustainable fabrics--silk, cotton, linen, reclaimed leather--meaning if you are into ethical clothes, Prophetik might be your ideal brand!

But, considering its design and practicality, Prophetik does commercially cute jackets and day dresses but I am not sure how feasible many of the ball gowns actually are. I'd say, they look a little too stagey, too much of a fairy-tale costume for my liking.

And the men? Ok, if these girlies are goddesses, the Prophetik men are more like farm boys and dudes you see hang around in landscape paintings and wait to be enticed by the goddesses.

Prophetik's menswear is more straightforward, more wearable, and relies a lot on layering to match this up to the ruffled and draped techniques employed for the women's collection. And, I'm sure you can guess, I'd die to have the white cropped jacket! But, no fairy tale godmother to fetch me a free one.

Back to the catwalk, there is definitely something romantic and idyllic about this Spring Summer collection, capturing the nostalgia of nice weather and open natural space. This light-hearted show ended, amusingly enough, in a folk band and a jig. Good? Yes, but am I at LFW or Shakespeare's Globe?

Hope you're let out of the office soon, Emmi. Love to hear your thoughts on the show you're going to today ;)

Mwah, mwah ..

Perm