Monday 16th September: Blog Takeover - Accessories and Headonism at Somerset House LFW SS14

 

 

Aside from the shows being held at the British Fashion Council show-space in the courtyard, there are a huge number of designers exhibiting inside Somerset House itself during London Fashion Week. 

Lily Kamper is a jewellery designer who particularly caught our attention. Lined up like perfume bottles her column pendants, sculpted like geometric totems delicately change colour whilst bolder blockier pieces mix marble with acrylic. There is a very graphical edge to Lily Kamper's work, particularly in her use of bold colour with clear or translucent components. Part of Young British Designers, SS 14 is her second collection since graduating from the RCA in 2012.

We simply could not resist Piers Atkinson's hats. Inspired by a little girl's bedroom 'It's MY Party' is a wonderfully playful referencing princesses, candy floss and carelessly applied make up. The imagery within this collection is sure to strike a chord with the little girls at heart masquerading as grown ups at fashion week. 

Headonism is one of the BFC initiatives set up to support emerging and exciting designers, specifically milliners such as Keely Hunter, also one of Selfridge's Bright Young Things 2013 (see last week!). The SS 14 collection is very clean cut mixing neutrals with metallics and soft curves with sharp edges. We particularly liked the futuristic vibe from the disc shaped pieces and the shaped wall of metallic silver which curls up and around the face. A very cleverly engineered collection it was a pleasure to see and, as always, it was a pleasure to chat to Keely too.

This has been a blog takeover from LONDON FASHION WEEK by Ciara Clark and Nicci James.

Sunday 15th September: BLOG TAKEOVER Orla Kiely SS14 LFW showcase.

Orla Kiely showcased her adorable safari-esque SS14 collection at Elms Lester Gallery on Saturday.

Before the show started we had a chance to look around the amazingly creative set (designed by James Hatt) which had been purpouse built in the style of a safari camp. Props included animals, grass, trees, an old radio, flasks, mugs and chairs all printed with Orla's signature designs. Every element down to the soundtrack 'The Lion Sleeps Tonight,' echoed the theme of the SS14 collection.

Models appeared from a little door and walked through the room carrying things such as lanterns, nets and jars with insects inside. They brought these onto set and made themselves at home playing records, getting warm by the campfire and interacting with the scenery. It was something straight out of Wes Anderson's 'Moonrise Kingdom' which we believe was Kiely's inspiration for this season.

The looks could be likened to very stylish 70's girl guides wearing details such as cute berets and knee high socks, animal-shaped mini satchels, classic croc embossed leather handbags and patent sandals in bold yellows and oranges. Playful and feminine, the safari style theme continued onto prints which included zebra, navy embroidered rhinos, lions and birds onto clean 70s inspired silhouettes.

Orla very successfully created a wonderful setting, enviroment and experience to showcase her SS14 collection. It was adorable with a wonderfully welcome element of fun.

This has been a blog takeover by Ciara and Nicci from Fred Butler HQ.

Sunday 15th September: LFW Backstage David Koma SS14

Saturday afternoon saw the return of David Koma to the BFC courtyard space at this years London Fashion Week at Somerset House. The collection drew inspiration from the Japanese art of Kyudo, a practice which combines meditation with martial art. This concept was consistent throughout the looks with bold structures, strong lines and angular silhouettes sculpted in a striking color palette of black, white and hues of blue. 

Pieces in pastel shades and white offered the calm after the black and blue storm, channeling the contrast between martial art and mediation that inspired the collection.

Fittingly styled by lady blue herself,  the magic Kim Howells, with sleek samurai ponies by GHD and subtle blue eye flicks by Maybelline, backstage was a hive of activity with last minute alterations being done right up until the final call. The soundtrack came in the form of an intense drum beat backing, which tied in perfectly with the dramatic nature of the first monochrome looks. 

Demonstrating a new take on an east meets west culture clash, and a perfect balance of girlish purity and female ferocity, congratulations to Team Koma on another stand out collection. 



Words and Pictures by Amy Lee

Friday 13th September: BLOG TAKEOVER 'The Black Market Clash' pop up on Berwick Street.

Berwick Street in Soho will play host to a pop up shop celebrating one of London's most acclaimed bands. With its strong musical roots Berwick Street is the prefect place for unique exhibition honouring The Clash.

The shop opened its doors on Saturday 7th September and will feature original and unseen relics on loan from The Clash archive including, instruments, stage wear and original manuscripts.

Curated by the band and Robert Gordon McHarg lll, the pop up will be showing film and video of the band, with the memorabilia and artefact exhibition downstairs whilst limited items will be for sale on the ground floor.

The Black Market Clash store will mark the remastered releases of 'The Clash Hits Back' compilation and the 'Sound System' boxset, which contains all of the bands studio albums.

The Clash pop-up store will be running from Saturday7 September - Sunday 22 September.

This has been a blog over by Ciara and Nicci from Fred Butler HQ.

Wednesday 11th September: The Photography of Punk Exhibition @ SHOWstudio

This month has seen Nick Knight’s brilliant SHOWstudio embrace everything PUNK, and what better way to accompany their stellar DIY series than with an incredibly impressive collection of hand-selected photographs, shown alongside punk royalty archival pieces.

The show is awe inspiring to say the least, with the walls of the neo-classical space adorned with some of punks most celebrated safety- pinned sovereigns, including Sid Vicious and Soo Catwoman.

Highlights include Jon Savage’s iconic ‘Uninhabited London’ series and a beautiful scrapbook of punk inspiration from the wonderfully eclectic Judy Blame.

The Photography of Punk is at 19 Motcomb St, SW1X 8LB and runs until 15^th November 2013. Entry is free. 

Words by Amy Lee

Photographs courtesy of SHOWstudio  

Thursday 5th September: BLOG TAKE OVER - Ciara and Nicci on Bright Young Things 2013

For the third year running, Selfridges have handed over their famous Oxford Street Windows and concept store to 15 emerging talents as part of their Bright Young Things initiative. Running until the 10th of October BYT is a showcase of fresh British talent across art, design, fashion and food. 

Each window, curated by the designer, is a snapshot of their aesthetic guaranteed to make you stop to look. They provide a great visual representation of the diversity of British talent coming into the public sphere right now. As well as their own collections, each creative has also designed a T-Shirt for BYT. These t-shirts, alongside the rest of their collections, are available to purchase inside the concept store. 

Included in this year's showcase is Anna Lomax, a maker and collector currently generating a huge impact in the field of Art Direction and Set Design. Lomax will be hosting a workshop at Selfridges on the 18th September, inviting you to interact with a prop and be in for a chance to win some special prizes.

Also featured is Milliner Keely Hunter who you will remember for the fabulous hat collaboration she did for the Fred Butler AW 13 collection. You can see archive posts with and about Keely here and here and here. If you are a hat lover too and would like to have a go at making your own then get down to Selfridges on the 2nd of October to get involved with Keely's Hat party where Fred will be doing a special DJ set.

To find out more and see the rest of the Bright Young Things, head to the Concept Store on G at Selfridges, London. You can also find full listings of the workshops on the website or if you're really keen you could email byt@selfridges.co.uk.

This has been a blog take over from Ciara and Nicci at Fred Butler HQ.

See all the archive posts for BYT here.