Continuing our look at London Fashion Week for the Fall/Winter 2019 collections, we’re spotlighting presentations by Molly Goddard, Rouland Mouret, and Christopher Kane.
Molly Goddard’s show had the range of an opera singer. With the amount of shapes, colors, textures, and styles, fashion lovers all over are bound to have a hard time narrowing down which may be their new favorite statement piece. Flounces of seafoam green tulle made up and at-the-knee dress, as did the material in hot pink for a gown; a long-sleeved cape-like top was made entirely out of strands of crystal, dandling open from the chest down to the ankles; and a few dresses—seen in varying lengths, and in lavender, black, and a fun yellow argyle print—gained attention for tiny bows in a row across the chest. Most looks were paired with simple black or brown boots, which was a perfect balance for the fun up top.
For his new collection, Rouland Mouret is breaking free of boundaries. The designer’s focus is on allowing his wearers to step away from sizing and gender, and wear something that’s slightly bigger. He’s also making it a point to focus on pieces that are to be worn over and over, as a nod to eliminating single-use pieces in the wardrobe. The collection was inspired by Lee Miller—a model turned fashion photographer turned Word War II photographer—who was an icon of the 20th century for refusing to be defined by gender, age, or physical beauty. Miller’s passion and resilience for a just and creative career during a time of devastation was translated in Mouret’s new garments. Per usual, the designer’s attention to femininity was heightened by slinky dresses, tops, and trousers. Cut-outs played an important role, with some dresses, like a long, sparkling deep purple one, showing just one shoulder. In addition to single-breasted and teddy bear coats, and new bags and shoes, the collection also debuted some chic business attire—a must being a plaid blazer that matched in pattern a skirt. The takeaway? A maroon piece of sheer maroon fabric appearing from a high slit and down to the hemline.
If you are active on Instargam, or even at best know someone who is, you saw that Christopher Kane set a runway ablaze yesterday. The collection—fluid, at least, and fetish, at best—was full of latex, lace, ruffles, and jewels. His first after splitting from the Kerin group, the presentation didn’t mock the make-believe, it celebrate the wearer and its fantasy-forward thoughts. He referenced fluidity quite literally, with blood bags in small red shapes with fluid-like fillings, and a new handbag that was inspired by urine vials. But of course, like several of his outfits with defying cutouts and sky-high hemlines, they were trimmed with chunky rhinestones. A few looks in particular really soared home for us though, like a top with white sleeves and an entirely lace mid-section paired with a blue bedazzled skirt, cut high on the right to reveal a lace parting; a white dress with a colorful balloon print, peeking out from underneath a long black coat made of dangling strips of shiny sequin-like fabric; dresses with “Rubberist” written on them, underneath a print of hands; and a one-sleeved long black silk dress, shorter on the right side, with a trim of large rhinestones across the chest and down the sleeve.
