SIDE VIEW MAGAZINE

By Carly Florentine

This was a very relaxing and serene start at 9am day 1 of Fashion Week with beautifully constructed garments and with the models looking fairly chipper, all buoyant and blissful down the catwalk with twee hair all twirled and pinned. That said the tempo of soundtrack progressed and Hilary Alexander could be seen having a jolly nice time of rocking out in the front row, the lady, the legend.

It was as smart and classic as it was flirty and feminine with tailoring, pleat details and smooth lines then thrills, voluminous shapes, high collars, baby doll dresses and ruffles. Glossy fabrics were used from satins to silks in neutral tones of cream, taupe and silver and with sailor collars and belted jackets there was a hint of urban safari to the theme. High hems and soft flowing silhouettes were present in the collection, with wide sleeves and cape back details on jackets. And though a smattering of colour came later on, with jade and magenta jumpers and blazers, mint green leaf prints and salmon and dark metallic grey, it was on the whole very English boating picnic and ladylike. I say, get thee to a lake!

This was a showstopper of a spectacle, parading what happens when Carnival meets couture as for SS12 Daniella Helayel transported Issa London back to her roots, Rio De Janeiro. As one might expect from a collection of trends inspired by the tropics, green glowed on many a garment, from limes, ultra-apple (yes I have created a new colour genre) to metallics contrasted with phosphorescent pinks, mellow mints neighboring orange prints and the unlikely new best friends green and gold. But blues and turquoises made a good effort of competing with good old green with royal, pale and neon hues offset by neutral tones of biscuit and bleached peach. In fact a continuing theme of the colour scheme was that of demure pales complemented by vivacious vibrancy. Riviera reminiscent simplicity was evident in the beautiful Broderie Anglaise. Beach babeliness was emitted in the hair styling with an understated mane of natural honey wavy curls flowing past the front row from model to model.

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The collection consisted of stunning shirts, swimwear, sexy shorts, darling day wear dresses, chic kaftan's, willowy jumpsuits, sophisticatedly structured dresses with neat lines, tiered planes and nipped in waists. From the simply cut to the body-con goddess gowns, all were flattering to the female form and with the innocence of embroidered white cotton, boat-necks and button detailing, little ladies other than screaming sensual sirens were catered for.  Many of the prints were instilled with nature such as florals however others portrayed dancing girls, mirroring the overlying theme, which while keen to stress it is a tropical party, it is first and foremost a party! As well as the unadulterated fun of the sweet sorbets, lavish black lace and gold brocade captured the decadent affluence of Rio. Dazzling disco details such as sequins,sparkles courtesy of light refracting crystals and feather abundance, not forgetting the fringed dresses made this a collection to dance the night away in. Models sambaed, bounced and Bossa Novaed in all their fruity, flirty finery and with hats provided by The Mr Stephen Jones, the finale, which featured a very lovely 'Lola' headpiece as worn appropriately enough by Brazilian super model Ana Beatriz Barros, this was a Copacabana moment if ever there was one. As amazing and exotic as the ensembles were, many of the 43 looks were also eminently wearable. Insert round of applause.

By Carly Florentine

The Rhapsody Collection for SS12 depicted a new dark sophistication. Featuring long dresses with fish net cut outs at the side seams, conical points on the bust of a blouse and flower embroidered frilly collared shirts, extravagance, romance and sensuality were at he heart of its concept. Religious iconography was manifest with allusions to Catholicism chic with veils, netting, crucifixes, high-collars, sheer fabrics, tulle and frills, as was a rock n roll sensibility with floaty dresses paired with leather jackets. Black, white and cream were the palette for this erotic Gothic masterpiece.Though it wasn't completely devoid of colour, particularly memorable was a floor-gliding pink and midnight print dress.
Intense expressions exuded from behind killer kohl eyes while a dramatic, classical score laced with rain and later organ music made for an atmospheric presentation of the collection until at the last hurdle the tension was lessened with a bit of buoyant rap for the finale.

Untitled from Nathan Matthews on Vimeo.

Hair was avant-guarde , shiny and off kilter, like the Grand Old Duke of York's Men was half way-up and half-down as well as half-straight and half-wavy. Another evident element was that of a minimalist Baroque modernism, with neo-classical net capes, digital prints and cutaway loose sleeves. Bird motifs were also present in the form of doves. The show itself was hauntingly beautiful and it reminded me of Madonna in a good way, 'Like a Prayer' was my favourite song as a little girl, it seemed imbued with such allure and meaning and would have been a good accompaniment to the theme but I think Jacob Kimmie is a bit too cool to opt for something so corny and obvious, but the same attractions present in the song were here too in the clothes.

By Carly Florentine

By Carly Florentine, Features Editor

I arise at 6am with a significantly improved mood and physical feelings after yesterdays unwellness inspired malaise. That is, bright eyed and bushy maned in spite of the bed-exiting at dawn, there is much to be said for the lark lifestyle, however I am still on antibiotics so shall have to abstain from temptations to partake in merriment. Champagne, Mademoiselle? No thank you. How very unheard of in the history of my life. First up was Paul Costelloe. A much too serenely beautiful show. At that early point in the morning I would have preferred a menagerie of riotous colour and screaming punk music to kick start the day/wake me up! Then came the worst part, the week in fact, registration. An inexperienced girl gave me the wrong info telling me she couldn't register me and directed me towards a woman who was much too busy and important to deal with her mistakes. Due to the hordes of people, she was also extremely difficult to get to. Then of course I practically had to part a sea of people, Moses style, to get back to the original girl who was by the way reprimanded for the error of her ways by not registering me. That done, I could move onto more important things-breakfast.

I was with my friend Hugo Harris from Spindle Magazine and we both went for the Crayfish Sandwich and Latte combo from Tom's Deli and went to find a spot in the sun on which to perch. Looking very real  and some might say street, we were per-chanced by some fashion journalists from The Guardian and subject to a miniature interview on our style and photographed. How amusingly our answers contrasted when we gave reference to where we obtained our clothes from. Hugo, an infinitesimally stylish man was wearing a vintage Versace shirt, a Vivienne Westwood blazer, shoes by Raf Simons and bag by Gianfranco Ferré, whereas all my gear was from either Zara or Brick Lane. Shortly after this glorious moment in the courtyard, the place for people watching, there was quite a kerfuffle over a poppet of a pug, all handsome furs and bear brown face, people came from afar in the courtyard at least to photograph — gender indeterminate, lets say her for simplicity's sake, far too pretty to be a boy I fancy.

As the lens flashed and smitten devotees gathered, she adopted the pose of one that veered between the basking in their fame and dumbstruck smug naivety, most endearingly was her little lolly like tongue that lolled in a jaunty downwards angle. I can report that comely canines are the latest accessory but that is akin to saying black is the colour du jour. This marked theme of people admiring dogs, can count myself amongst its victims. Around 3 in the afternoon I was privy to this trend as I was lured under the spell of one of those gorgeous small dogs, my ignorance forbids me in naming its breed. A Chihuahua perhaps. Waiting for the Jerboa Jewellery show to start, I found myself entranced by its beauty, which left me feeling a smidgen of awkwardness as I had the suspicion that I had met the owner last fashion week, a marvellous man of verve and grandeur but his vastly different hairstyle since then left me too uncertain to offer a wave.

As I looked into the Malteser like eyes of this petit creature, I was reminded of the love before the love before and shuddered and put an end to this frivolous sentimentality by casting my mind to fantasies about shoes. Anyway enough of the dog tangent and back to the chronological order of the day.

Hugo and I checked out the press lounge and were fairly unimpressed, then we went our separate ways and I to Caroline Charles which was fairly similar to the one before. Always towards the back but then I guess at least I wasn't standing. My following show was a tres belle collection by Bora Aksu which sent my heart aflutter. I then finally left the confines of Somerset House to go to Fashion Mavericks at The Strand Palace Hotel, which as grand as it sounds was sadly not. I have learnt the hard way that the la-di-da-iest of titles usually means its converse. But upon arrival where I was bestowed with a front row ticket, Har-di-har, I soon forgot this detail.

After this jewellery show, I made a dash up The Strand, looking for cigarettes and a smattering of a snack.  As always thoughts of food were interrupting my concentration. Meanwhile my phone was vibrating out of control. Hugo Harris and I resumed our fashion week companionship and he relayed a very amusing anecdote about a very sweet darling encounter that he had with Brix Smith-Start, how I wish it had been me! The next show was by far my least favourite of the week. Hugo mused that he would not do a write up for it, as he didn't have anything nice to say and didn't want to berate a designer so early on in their career. I have a similar predicament, that of the nice critic.

Subsequent to this we were back out onto the street, once more in pursuit of food, satiating our hunger in a German Cafe, sausages all round. Then we conspired to smuggle myself into the Teatum Jones presentation, which I had outrageously not been invited to. We were confident or trying to summon it with the assertion that if they did not want me, I would take myself elsewhere. When I got to the lady with the clipboard, I made like I was on the guest list. Imagine our delight that my name was actually on the list and wondered how many of my invitations had gone amiss. Once in, I was glad for it was one  of the loveliest presentations and Martinis were served. I was ready to drink something other than Vitamin Water!

We then meandered over toThe Old Sorting Office for The Basso and Brooke show, we waited a while but once at the front,  it became apparent that Hugo's ticket was subject to greater privileges than mine and I was directed towards the back of an absurdly long queue. Which was fine in the end as I got to stand on a raised bit and could actually see the show properly for once. After the show, Hugo asked whether I'd like to tag along to Christopher Raeburn in the hope I'd gain admittance but went in favour of the bus home where I saw Princess Julia headed back east also. I received phone calls en route home from two of my favourite weekend partners in crime where they were informed I was not able to come out and play. I said no, I was going home for a nap, to wash my hair and then write up my seven catwalk reports and this diary for the day. But what actually happened was I didn't awake from my supposed cat nap.

Spring Summer 2012 draws inspiration from the silver screen, namely Grace Kelly in High Society and movie stills of Michelle Pfeiffer in Scarface. The resultant collection is elegant, sensual and ultra glamorous.

Here are three of our favourite looks at the Tiffany Amber show during London Fashion Week

Mawi unveils its Spring Summer 2012 Collection at London Fashion Week

Hyper Luxe

Pyramid

Talisman

Designer: Belle Sauvage

Appeals to the woman with attitude and with no fashion boundaries

The collection brings in elements of colour, graphics, prints and is very reminiscent of movies like Barbarella and Flash Gordon

Shop the collection at: http://www.shopbellesauvage.co.uk/