The Rosegold Magazine . You own your FASHION
LFW SS20: top 10 shows
21st September 2019 - Aina Matamoros
London is usually the most left out top four fashion weeks. Although it has big names in it (Victoria Beckham, Burberry, J.W. Anderson, Erdem), it is true that it may not have as many internationally known brands and designers than the other four. London is related to emerging designers, to alternative fashion and to broken patterns. That may be the reason it is less mainstream but, at the same time, it is also the reason why it should be even more important and people should pay even more attention to every show happening in the British capital city.
This year, designers such as Richard Quinn and Christopher Kane, with only few years of showing, have established their brands in London and they are already some of the most exciting shows. Also, I have discovered some designers I did not know about, such as Molly Goddard, Julien Macdonald and Halpern, which I really loved.
Here are my top 10 shows from London Fashion Week Spring Summer 2020. All very different from one another, which reflects the London fashion’s scene, but with a clear winner, listed as my number one. Yes, it is her: Victoria Beckham.
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My lovely friend Núria Pujol (@nuriarandomthings) picked two of my favorite looks from LFW, one from Burberry (up) and another one from Victoria Beckham (down) and made this beautiful drawings. Thank you :)
1. Victoria Beckham
I want it all. That is what every fashion lover says having seen the wonderful SS20 show Victoria Beckham presented in London. Every look is just perfect in every aspect: color combination, layering, accessorizes, the tailoring, the model chosen to wear it. Her team of designers is the best in the whole world. Also, she was celebrating the 10th anniversary of her brand, so it was an even more special and important occasion.
With a clear 70’s inspiration, the looks went from elegant and formal office ready suits in grey and camel colors, with relaxed straight pants and subtly oversized and structured blazers or midi flowy skirts paired with romantic pastel blouses, to fluid maxi dresses in different colors, both for day and night, going from white to black through surprising bright colors such as green, purple, and ochre, as well as some featuring floral prints (for spring? Groundbreaking. – Miranda Priestly.). Dresses (and even less fluid dresses) do not normally have that much presence in Victoria Beckham’s collections, but this season, she wanted to show her evolution in fashion and style through this 10 years by presenting herself as she is now, which resulted in a gorgeous collection. However, the real star of the show was her daughter Harper, who sat front row (in her dad’s lap) next to (the one and only) Anna Wintour (the dream spot as I like to call it) and also took over some Instagram stories of her mom’s account. And the best look, of course, was worn by Victoria herself when she came out to salute the audience.
2. Burberry
In his third season at Burrberry, Ricardo Tisci has already established himself as the perfect match for the brand. The SS20 collection showed a curated mix between Italian and British styles: the Burberry essence is there, but Tisci’s tailoring techniques have elevated it to a whole new level.
The color palette was tight: only white, beige, brown, black, grey and shades of these. The collection also included some prints, but with the same colors. The looks seemed formal and serious at first sight but they were trendy, daring and young. Office looks with suits and coordinated outfits and quite structured mini dresses were the base of the collection. The iconic trench was also included in various looks and in different colors and models, which reflected Tisci’s new vision for the brand while keeping its legacy alive. Fringes and rare-shaped bucket heads finished some looks and I think these elements needed to be pointed out. Also the Hadid’s, Irina Shayk and a blonde Kendall Jenner led the model casting and all the headlines (especially the new blondie… how craze people go for a hair color change).
3. Erdem
Know for his perfectly made extra long romantic dresses, Erdem’s inspiration for this SS20 collection was the multi-episodic life of Tina Modotti, a silent movie actress in Hollywood and a photographer and communist in Mexico. Her pictures inspired the shapes of this season: voluminous dresses and skirts adorned with exaggerated ruffles and big sleeves, as well as with some accessorizes like flat pamela hats and scarfs tied around the models’ necks using a prominent bow.
Presented in a garden in the middle of London, black and white looks mixed with bright colored looks that featured a various range of floral and stripped prints. Floor-length skirts were paired with buttoned up tops: almost every look covered the whole models’ skin, except for their face and hands (except for the ones who had short-sleeved tops, who were wearing gloves). Even though it may seem the dresses are old and too prudent, they are actually are fresh, modern and so beautiful.
4. JW Anderson
This man’s work is always impeccable. For his SS20 show, JW Anderson presented a collection based on draped asymmetrical dresses and wonderful tailored pantsuits and trenches, as well as some top and bottom combinations. All of the looks hinted a futuristic point of view (also with the use of silver and golden fabrics in some of them, such as the golden pantsuit I want hanging in my closet ASAP). Following his signature clothing deconstruction, he twisted the techniques a little, leaving the clothes a little (just a little) more “constructed” and including some other breaking elements, in this case, crystal jewelry elements: some of the looks were finished with jeweled (kind of) bras and belts. There were a few very different printed dresses in between, which I did not quite understand inside the whole collection but they gave some color I guess. Anyway, the collection was great.
5. Richard Quinn
Richard Quinn brought “couture fantasy land” to London Fashion Week. His SS20 collection was full of floral pints, bows, feathers (always my favorite one) and huge puffed shoulders; models looked like dolls. The looks went from short dresses with voluminous ruffled skirts that made models look like decoration Christmas balls (although their legs – for days – looked amazing) to wide tunic-like long dresses, going through other dresses with more fitted silhouettes on the waist. Also, some of the models wore a shiny leather long-sleeved shirt under their dress, turning it into a kind of femme fatale look (which I really liked by the way).
The final section was for the brides! Richard Quinn presented a selection of wedding gowns, each one with a very different style: short, long, straight, voluminous, dramatic, relaxed… all of them including some Quinn’s signature touches and all of them gorgeous. Oh! And at the very end, a group of adorable little girls walked the runway wearing super cute floral dresses with an amazing white-feathered hood. The perfect fairy tale ending.
6. Cristopher Kane
The firs looks at Christopher Kane’s SS20 show were a clear reference to one of the main inspirations for this collection: nature. Very natural floral prints, imitating a real green field of flowers, were used in skirts, dresses, coats and tops and mixed with black garments to create more contrast. The following looks were presented using mainly a warm color palette (orange, yellow, brown and pink) until the last looks, were the references to the planet were back. Prints resembling the water in movement, sweaters with a big planet Earth and the message “Eco Sex” and, for the very end, looks that paid tribute to the space and the galaxy featuring galactic starred prints or all silver shiny dresses.
At the same time, Kane’s signature sexy silhouettes and touches were still present in the collection, with heart-shaped bras on dresses or cutouts on the waist and on the chest.
7. Halpern
London’s king of sequins, or Michael Halpern for the family, presented a SS20 collection that can be described in juts one word: shiny. Perfectly matching the big beautiful sparkling chandeliers in the back, the show started with some white printed looks but quickly changed with a coordinated golden look with high waist wide leg pants and a strapless crop top covered with an open jacket (which is my favorite look from the collection, by the way). From that moment on, all the looks kept shining and soon the sequins appeared, in classic silver dresses and also in more daring ones like red, pink or purple.
There were very different kinds of dresses for all different kinds of styles, body types and women: long, short, with cutouts or daring necklines, pantsuits, covered with capes, fluid and wide or tight. Evening wear season is served.
8. Simone Rocha
Simone Rocha’s SS20 collection was really pretty. The midi dresses were the star of the show, featuring ruffles (on shoulders, cuffs, skirts…), voluminous silhouettes and beautiful prints (especially floral and china prints). The color palette was also very pleasant: the collection went from white to black through beige, pale pink and red. Rocha’s presentation felt romantic and daring at the same time, with very soft looks mixed with bolder ones. A true representation of the two moods we all women experience every day. The final looks were nighttime dresses: the length of the skirt touched the floor and there was even a sequined dress. Also, quick shout out to the pearl dress, matching with a pearl shaped purse that was just perfect.
9. Molly Goddard
I did not know this designer (although she first appeared in LFW 5 years ago) and I really liked her collection. For SS20, Molly Goddard presented a show full of romanticism, but it was not cheesy, but modern, fresh and daring. Big ruffled skirts are one of her signature looks, present throughout the whole collection in different styles. Chiffon and tulle fabrics were also included in many looks, using them for the skirts, but also for tops, dresses or to do some kind of complements to a whole looks. Black and beige mixed with brighter colors like blue, pink and red, which gave the collection a more vivid touch.
10. Julien Macdonald
I did not know this designer either and I really liked his collection, too. Sexy, bold and hot dresses are Julien Macdonald's specialty and although it may sound tacky, the result is glamorous, fancy and a real show stealer. (Very) short dresses were the star of the SS20 show, adorned with fringes, feathers and sparkling elements. Also asymmetrical skirts and strategically made cutouts gave more hotness to the looks, which also included glammed up bodysuits (or swimsuits directly), for those who look for the most daring option. A part from black, the rest of the colors used in the collection were soft and pastel shades. So if you want all eyes on you, just put on a Julien Macdonald.