Julien MacDonald has come a long way from a childhood in Wales, where he grew up with dreams of being a dancer. On Sunday, the designer, who went on to work for Chanel and Alexander McQueen, showed his collection in central London, in a space with white vaulted ceilings and large windows on either side. After the mayhem that was Lincoln Center during New York Fashion Week, MacDonald's show was, in essence, very classy. His clothes were lacy and inspired by lingerie. They came in a range of nudes, with the exception of a few pops of orange and black. A remix of the languid "Summertime" wafted through the room, as models pranced in short lace dresses with billowing backs.
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MacDonald was recently named a judge on Britain's Next Top Model alongside Elle MacPherson, who literally stopped traffic outside his show when she emerged from her car. And she lingered: After working every possible pose for photographers outside, MacPherson eventually ascended to her seat in the front row, where she sat alongside Cat Deeley. MacPherson wore a pair of black leather pants, a black jacket, spike heels, and a head of beachy curls.
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If you were looking to the runway of Twenty8Twelve, Sienna and Savannah Miller's line, for ways to dress like the iconic sisters—this season may prove a little more difficult. Their spring/ summer collection, which showed in London on Saturday, was apparently inspired by Mexico in the '50s—a departure from Miller's signature urban-It Girl look. Easy and wearable floral sundresses came down the runway with flats. Loose denim shorts were shown with tan blazers and sheepskin jackets. "We wanted it to be summery, fun and lighthearted," Savannah said of the collection.
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Model walks the runway at the Twenty8Twelve spring/summer 2011 show at London Fashion Week at Old Sorting Office on September 18.
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Sienna Miller's on-again-off-again (and now on-again) boyfriend Jude Law held court in the front row of her show on Saturday alongside her close pal, the designer Matthew Williamson. The next day, Sienna returned the favor, sitting front-row at Wiliamson's show at Battersea Station. In addition to Miller, Poppy Delevigne, Olivia Palermo, and Cat Deeley also took in Matthew Willamson's spring/ summer 2011 show from the front row. Afterward, Miller rushed backstage to give the designer a big hug. "I just thought it was an incredible show," Sienna Miller told The Daily Beast backstage. "From the billowing dresses to the tailored jackets, I just thought it was stunning and I'm so proud."
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While her ex-boyfriend, Kanye West, toured the shows during New York Fashion Week, Amber Rose front-row hopped in London. She's been in almost every front row, in a different outfit every time. On Sunday alone, she channeled Dr. Seuss in round plastic glasses and a fur shirt at Matthew Williamson; inexplicably wore green sweatpants and aviators at Julien MacDonald; and a skin-tight pink mini-dress when she hit the streets. Saturday, she wore a Henry Holland bandana jumpsuit and pink sunglasses, a webbed-knit dress over a turtleneck at the TopShop show, and a white Grecian skirt on the runway at BodyAmr. "Here's what I didn't expect," tweeted Derek Blasberg. "Amber Rose, or whatever @KanyeWest's exgirlfriend is called, is somehow relevant in London. Who knew?"
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How's this for a setting: Antonio Berardi's super-stark collection was shown under a Renaissance ceiling in the Great Hall in Westminster, painted with a mural from World War II. The clothes were a jarring departure from the space, which was packed-filled with leather-wearing Brits. He debuted black and white angular dresses, and experimented with volume. A few dresses, like those made of pink appliqué, stood out against military-style jackets.
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Show-goers trekked to the TopShop Show Space in the abandoned Waterloo Station for Michael Van Der Ham's show on Sunday afternoon—but what they got was worth the hike. Van Der Ham is a young Dutch designer who interned at Alexander McQueen before he launched a solo career in 2009 with a Warhol-inspired collection of composite dresses. And that Pop Art aesthetic lingers in his current season, where he debuted neon brocade dresses with uneven hems. Against the hallowed shell of the old subway station, the marriage of antique fabrics with futuristic shapes and colors had a distinctly modern feel—this collection was distinctly avant-garde.
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Vivienne Westwood at the Vivienne Westwood Red Label spring/summer 2011 show at London Fashion Week on September 19.
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A model is prepared backstage before the show from designer Vivienne Westwood during London Fashion Week, on September 19.
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Filing in for Vivienne Westwood's show on Sunday felt a bit like attending the best party in town on Halloween. Ushers leading people to their seats were themselves punks, with hair every shade on the spectrum from red to gray. The freaky feel of the audience was lead by grand dame Janice Dickinson, who flashed some serious legs in a mini-dress before the show. But then she was one-upped by the arrival of Pamela Anderson, who wore an (obviously) figure-hugging rainbow dress, presumably a Westwood design.
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Daisy Lowe (L) Vivienne Westwood (C) and Jacquetta Wheeler (R) walk the runway during the Vivienne Westwood Red Label spring/summer 2011 fashion show during London Fashion Week on September 19.
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Westwood's clothes seemed reminiscent of every possible genre and trend—resulting in a mish-mash that can only be pulled off when under the heading "British Punk." There were girlie soccer socks, a belted boyfriend's nightshirt, checkered shirts with muscular arms, baggy tuxedo pants, ripped tights, a lampshade hat, a mushroom hat, a white ruffled dress with a black studded belt, a sequined party dress, leopard print, a fortune cookie hat, and a metallic brocade mini-dress. And, in true Vivienne Westwood nature, it all looked modern and fresh. The queen of British grunge accepted a bouquet of flowers and walked the runway with the gaggle of models, including Daisy Lowe, behind her at the end of the show.
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Though footwear wasn't as daunting as it could have been, several models around London began the week by officially biting it. A model wearing socks and platform sandals lost her footing on Betty Jackson's runway. Another fell down a short set of stairs at Charles Anastase on Saturday. Lucky for her, however, a wide-brimmed hat shielded her face, sparing her photographic embarrassment.
Gareth Cattermole / Getty Images; Antonio de Moraes Barros Filho, WireImage / Getty Images
