Amelia’s Magazine | London Fashion Week S/S 2012 Showroom Review: EcoLuxe London

'Ecolooks' EcoLuxe London Exhibition LFW SS12 by Maria Papadimitriou aka Slowly The Eggs

‘Ecolooks’ by Maria Papadimitriou aka Slowly The Eggs

I was hugely excited that during this London Fashion Week I had the opportunity not only to go and see but also exhibit at the EcoLuxe London exhibition that took place in a beautiful space on the ground floor of the Kingsway Hall Hotel almost next to the Vauxhall Fashion Scout’s Freemasons’ Hall. Ecoluxe London takes place twice a year during London Fashion Week and is a non-profit platform that promotes fashion related ecoluxury brands and aims to raise awareness of ecological issues with the public. Its organisers, information pills Stamo and Elena Garcia, who are sustainable womenswear designers themselves, featured over 40 brands this year and EcoLuxe London is growing every year – here’s only a few examples that took my fancy!

EcoLuxe London LFW SS12 Lucy Harvey Ethical Stylist

EcoLuxe London LFW SS12 Ethical Stylist Lucy Harvey and Hetty Rose

Ethical stylist Lucy Harvey styling shoe designer Hetty Rose with a Plastic Seconds headpiece and necklace.

Upon entering the exhibition visitors were greeted by superbly talented stylist Lucy Harvey and her assistant Charlie Divall, who offered to upstyle them with various pieces from the exhibitors’ tables and then photograph them and tweet about it. I thought in this way Lucy offered a really fun, interactive introduction to the exhibition and a great way of promoting both the designers’ and the visitors’ work.

EcoLuxe London LFW SS12 Lupe Castro wearing Supported by Rain and Plastic Seconds

Stylist Lupe Castro styled by Lucy Harvey with a Supported by Rain coat and a Plastic Seconds headpiece, photo by Charlie Divall

Walking further into the exhibition the first thing to catch my eye was a series of gloriously colourful raincoats by Maria Ampatielou’s new brand Supported by Rain – seen above. Made of recycled umbrellas and end-of-roll waterproof fabrics, these raincoats are not only beautiful but also cleverly fold into their own pockets or hoods, whose insides have remained dry, so that you can put them back into your bag without any soaked diary dramas!

STAMO EcoLuxe London LFW SS12 by Celine Elliott

By Stamo S/S 2012 by Celine Elliott

EcoLuxe London LFW SS12 STAMO belt

By Stamo, which featured in Amelia’s Compendium of Fashion Illustration, is another brand I enjoyed especially because of the theatricality in the designs and the extensive use of found and recycled materials whose original form is often retained – as seen in this bullet belt.

INALA LONDON EcoLuxe London LFW SS12 by Caire Kearns

INALA London S/S 2012 by Claire Kearns

My neighbour exhibitor Alani Gibbon of INALA London showed some designs which were a natural hit with me becuase of their bright colours, but they further impressed me with their cleverness and versatility. For example a hooded short dress could be turned around and worn as an all-in-one playsuit! Not to mention the use of pulped eucalyptus fabric which felt amazing to touch.

OUTSIDER Ecoluxe London LFW SS12 by Maria Papadimitriou aka Slowly The Eggs

Outsider Fashion S/S 2012 by Maria Papadimitriou aka Slowly The Eggs

I was thrilled to see the brand Outsider winning the JP Selects womenwear award at the end of the show as they stongly promote the notion that ‘ethical’ fashion should just look like very good fashion with their range of classic but very stylish designs.

HEMYCA EcoLuxe London LFW SS12 by Celine Elliott

Hemyca S/S 2012 by Celine Elliott

Hemyca is a multi award winning brand and I was most attracted by this beautifully tailored matching dress and coat.

LFW SS2012 Agnes Valentine Ecoluxe London by Maria Papadimitriou aka Slowly The Eggs

Agnes Valentine S/S 2012 by Maria Papadimitriou aka Slowly The Eggs

Along with Hemyca above, whom I was not aware of, it was great to discover my dream swimsuit designer Agnes Valentine! The brand sources fine italian eco fabrics and their designs are minimal and classic but with bold colours and very feminine indeed.

EcoLuxe London LFW SS12 Hetty Rose shoes

EcoLuxe London LFW SS12 Hetty Rose shoes worn by Alice Wilby

It was an honour to meet another ACOFI designer Hetty Rose whose fun bespoke shoes are made using vintage Japanese kimono fabrics, Alice Wilby from Futurefrock modelled this pair and did not want to take them off!

EcoLuxe London LFW SS12 Golden Grass Company clutch

Next to Hetty Rose I found the friendly couple behind the Golden Grass Company who design jewellery and accessories for native artisans in Brazil to make out of a naturally golden, light and durable fibre, which is grown without chemicals or pesticides, under fair trade standards – LOVED this clutch!

EcoLuxe London LFW SS12 Monique Luttin headpiece

Sharing a table with me was Monique Luttin who makes intriguing headpieces using offcuts or vintage fabrics and found objects – I particularly liked this bird scull one which has a tribal, ritualistic element to it.

EcoLuxe London LFW SS12 Palstic Seconds printer packaging pendand

And finally a piece from the Plastic Seconds recycled jewellery collection I exhibited made out of the plastic, colourful bits one finds when unpacking a new printer…

As Hannah Bullivant pointed out in a previous post on EcoLuxe London, hopefully sustainable practices in fashion design will become mainstream and the brands that are still termed ‘ethical’ will no longer have to exhibit in separate showrooms and sections such as EcoLuxe or Estethica. Hopefully soon.

All photography by Maria Papadimitriou unless otherwise stated.

Categories ,Agnes Valentine, ,Alice Wilby, ,By Stamo, ,Celine Elliott, ,Charlie Divall, ,Claire Kearns, ,Classic, ,Coat, ,design, ,designer, ,Dress, ,ecodesign, ,Ecoluxe, ,Elena Garcia, ,estethica, ,Ethical brands, ,fashion, ,Feminine, ,Freemasons’ Hall, ,Futurefrock, ,Headpiece, ,Hemyca, ,Hetty Rose, ,Inala London, ,jewellery, ,Kingsway Hall Hotel, ,London Fashion Week, ,Lucy Harvey, ,Lupe Castro, ,Maria Papadimitriou, ,minimal, ,Monique Luttin Millinery, ,Outsider, ,Outsider Fashion, ,Plastic Seconds, ,Pulped Eucalyptus, ,Recycled Materials, ,shoes, ,Slow Fashion, ,Slowly the Eggs, ,Supported by Rain, ,Swimwear, ,tailoring, ,Vauxhall Fashion Scout, ,vintage, ,Womenswear

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Amelia’s Magazine | London Fashion Week S/S 2012 Catwalk Review: Toni & Guy – Hair Meets Wardrobe


Naomi Campbell, salve illustrated by Phoebe Kirk

So fashion week (unofficially) kicked off early this S/S 2012 season with a Thursday night show-cum-product launch from purveyors of the faukhawk, Toni & Guy. I had no idea what to expect from this. Well, clearly I imagined there’d be a fair few hair dos on display – but would it take the form of a normal runway show? What would the fashion be like? Would I leave desperate to dash to my nearest T&G salon? I was soon to find out.


Toni & Guy, illustrated by Gareth A Hopkins

Inside the uninspiring BFC tent within the awe-inspiring Somerset House, we were treated to champagne, Pimm’s and traumatic canapés that make it entirely impossible to look attractive whilst throwing them in your gob. I was starving though, so I did my best ‘I-don’t-even-care-about-looking-attractive’ face whilst hoovering them up. Inside the tent we were rewarded with pretty decent seats, an enormous goodie bag featuring the new Toni & Guy Hair Meets Wardrobe range, and a crisp A4 sheet detailing what was about to happen. I scanned down it and thought I read ‘with an introduction by Naomi Campbell’. I read through it again. I hadn’t been mistaken; ‘with an introduction by NAOMI CAMPBELL‘. There it was, in black and white. Really? The Naomi Campbell? Yikes.


Naomi Campbell, illustrated by Sally Jane Thompson

A scrum ensued when Olivia Palermo took her Frow seat right in front of us: flash after flash left a permanent glare on my eyeballs. She was joined by Matthew Williamson in a rather stylish hat, with yet more flashbulbs going off at record speed.


Olivia Palermo, illustrated by The Lovely Wars

The lights dimmed and an X-Factor-style voiceover requested we welcome NAOMI CAMPBELL. Not much of an ask, let’s face it. Out she sashayed to huge cheers, and I could actually feel one of my legs wobbling. I write the next sentence with caution and hide behind my screen to avoid any airborne mobile phones, but our Naomi isn’t the best public speaker. I can’t imagine she’d spent much time rehearsing, but she fluffed her way through it, referring to Hair Meets Wardrobe as ‘Meet the Wardrobe’, at which I chuckled. Having said that, a woman like Naomi could read the Yellow Pages aloud and I’d still be completely mesmerised.


All photography by Matt Bramford

On with the show, and a video popped up on the big screen showing some of nature’s finest matches: fish ‘n’ chips, gin and tonic and so on – I think they were getting at that hair and wardrobe are quiet important together – a concept not brand new to fashion. The show was then divided into four sections (the four components of the new Toni & Guy brand): classic, casual, glamour and creative.

Classic


Illustration by Gilly Rochester

The classic section featured 1960s-esque natural beauties with slick hair styles. Croydon facelifts were popular – a hairstyle that will never go out of fashion.

Casual
I loved the ‘casual’ section, and can’t wait to mess up my locks with the sea salt spray we were given. Sexy bedroom hair, that I’ve since seen on numerous catwalks, was presented in a variety of ways, from backcombed scruffy heaps piled atop models’ heads, to long natural styles with uneven plaits.

Glamour


Illustration by Gilly Rochester

T&G cranked up the glamour for what was by far my favourite portion of the show. 1920s tight waves walked alongside big, big backcombed locks and modern interpretations of the pompadour. Sexy, smokey eye make-up and flowing frocks brought the looks together perfectly.

Creative

Illustration by Gareth A Hopkins

This is praps what Toni&Guy are essentially known for – and I have to admit that I was expecting much more of this from the show. Y’know – the kind of hairstyle popular with Diesel-clad punters from Leeds. A couple of spiked coloured numbers felt a bit dated in the mix of all that glamour and sophistication, but a Louise Brooks-esque severe bob soon turned things around. A few cartoonish styles at the end brought a welcomed bit of fun.

Previous fashion editor of Tatler, Charlie Anderson, had styled the show and had married striking outfits with each of the hairstyles. it’s difficult to focus on hair alone when you’re used to watching models parade backwards and forwards, but the clothes (apart from the final pieces) were cool enough to bring the barnets to life without stealing the show. These were my final thoughts as another pap scrum formed where Naomi had taken her seat.

All photography by Matt Bramford

Categories ,BFC, ,Casual, ,Charlie Anderson, ,Classic, ,Creative, ,fashion, ,Fauxhawk, ,Gareth A Hopkins, ,Gilly Rochester, ,Glamour, ,Hair, ,Hair Meets Wardrobe, ,London Fashion Week, ,Louise Brooks, ,Naomi Campbell, ,Phoebe Kirk, ,Pimm’s, ,S/S 2012, ,Sally Jane Thompson, ,Somerset House, ,The X Factor Voice Over Man, ,Toni & Guy

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Amelia’s Magazine | London Fashion Week S/S 2012 Catwalk Review: Toni & Guy – Hair Meets Wardrobe


Naomi Campbell, salve illustrated by Phoebe Kirk

So fashion week (unofficially) kicked off early this S/S 2012 season with a Thursday night show-cum-product launch from purveyors of the faukhawk, Toni & Guy. I had no idea what to expect from this. Well, clearly I imagined there’d be a fair few hair dos on display – but would it take the form of a normal runway show? What would the fashion be like? Would I leave desperate to dash to my nearest T&G salon? I was soon to find out.


Toni & Guy, illustrated by Gareth A Hopkins

Inside the uninspiring BFC tent within the awe-inspiring Somerset House, we were treated to champagne, Pimm’s and traumatic canapés that make it entirely impossible to look attractive whilst throwing them in your gob. I was starving though, so I did my best ‘I-don’t-even-care-about-looking-attractive’ face whilst hoovering them up. Inside the tent we were rewarded with pretty decent seats, an enormous goodie bag featuring the new Toni & Guy Hair Meets Wardrobe range, and a crisp A4 sheet detailing what was about to happen. I scanned down it and thought I read ‘with an introduction by Naomi Campbell’. I read through it again. I hadn’t been mistaken; ‘with an introduction by NAOMI CAMPBELL‘. There it was, in black and white. Really? The Naomi Campbell? Yikes.


Naomi Campbell, illustrated by Sally Jane Thompson

A scrum ensued when Olivia Palermo took her Frow seat right in front of us: flash after flash left a permanent glare on my eyeballs. She was joined by Matthew Williamson in a rather stylish hat, with yet more flashbulbs going off at record speed.


Olivia Palermo, illustrated by The Lovely Wars

The lights dimmed and an X-Factor-style voiceover requested we welcome NAOMI CAMPBELL. Not much of an ask, let’s face it. Out she sashayed to huge cheers, and I could actually feel one of my legs wobbling. I write the next sentence with caution and hide behind my screen to avoid any airborne mobile phones, but our Naomi isn’t the best public speaker. I can’t imagine she’d spent much time rehearsing, but she fluffed her way through it, referring to Hair Meets Wardrobe as ‘Meet the Wardrobe’, at which I chuckled. Having said that, a woman like Naomi could read the Yellow Pages aloud and I’d still be completely mesmerised.


All photography by Matt Bramford

On with the show, and a video popped up on the big screen showing some of nature’s finest matches: fish ‘n’ chips, gin and tonic and so on – I think they were getting at that hair and wardrobe are quiet important together – a concept not brand new to fashion. The show was then divided into four sections (the four components of the new Toni & Guy brand): classic, casual, glamour and creative.

Classic


Illustration by Gilly Rochester

The classic section featured 1960s-esque natural beauties with slick hair styles. Croydon facelifts were popular – a hairstyle that will never go out of fashion.

Casual
I loved the ‘casual’ section, and can’t wait to mess up my locks with the sea salt spray we were given. Sexy bedroom hair, that I’ve since seen on numerous catwalks, was presented in a variety of ways, from backcombed scruffy heaps piled atop models’ heads, to long natural styles with uneven plaits.

Glamour


Illustration by Gilly Rochester

T&G cranked up the glamour for what was by far my favourite portion of the show. 1920s tight waves walked alongside big, big backcombed locks and modern interpretations of the pompadour. Sexy, smokey eye make-up and flowing frocks brought the looks together perfectly.

Creative

Illustration by Gareth A Hopkins

This is praps what Toni&Guy are essentially known for – and I have to admit that I was expecting much more of this from the show. Y’know – the kind of hairstyle popular with Diesel-clad punters from Leeds. A couple of spiked coloured numbers felt a bit dated in the mix of all that glamour and sophistication, but a Louise Brooks-esque severe bob soon turned things around. A few cartoonish styles at the end brought a welcomed bit of fun.

Previous fashion editor of Tatler, Charlie Anderson, had styled the show and had married striking outfits with each of the hairstyles. it’s difficult to focus on hair alone when you’re used to watching models parade backwards and forwards, but the clothes (apart from the final pieces) were cool enough to bring the barnets to life without stealing the show. These were my final thoughts as another pap scrum formed where Naomi had taken her seat.

All photography by Matt Bramford

Categories ,BFC, ,Casual, ,Charlie Anderson, ,Classic, ,Creative, ,fashion, ,Fauxhawk, ,Gareth A Hopkins, ,Gilly Rochester, ,Glamour, ,Hair, ,Hair Meets Wardrobe, ,London Fashion Week, ,Louise Brooks, ,Naomi Campbell, ,Phoebe Kirk, ,Pimm’s, ,S/S 2012, ,Sally Jane Thompson, ,Somerset House, ,The X Factor Voice Over Man, ,Toni & Guy

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Amelia’s Magazine | London Fashion Week A/W 2011 Catwalk Review: Clements Ribeiro


Illustration by Avril Kelly

Finally escaping the intermittent drizzle, pilule I find myself standing in a beautiful hall within the restored Northumberland House in Trafalgar Square. The ornate ceiling is touching the sky and the splendour of its Victorian past hushes the crowd. The audience here appears slightly subdued. Notepads out, here pens uncapped and eyes focused on the catwalk. Tiptoeing at the back, viagra 40mg I strain to view the runway. I’m anticipating what Suzanne Clements and Inacio Ribeiro will bring to the catwalk to tease our fashion palettes. Spotlights alight causing the last of the whispers to subside and all gaze expectantly at the white path ahead, as the soundtrack strikes.

Enter structured jackets embellished with heraldic embroidery and printed silk skirts, jumpsuits and dresses in autumn colours, burnt orange and berry red. The prints vary, from pretty paisleys to luxurious leopard print. I’m not usually attracted to animal print, but I’m longing for the paisley meets leopard print dress, sporting blue silk detail on the neck and shoulders. It’s simple and elegant but not at all banal. High necks, low cinched waists and midi length skirts in vivid blue and red make for graceful dresses that suggest a marriage of Victoriana and 1970s styles. Bold and neutral colours follow, sheathed in dazzling gems that revive nostalgia for the 1950s.


Live catwalk illustration by Jenny Robins

The colours fade into cloudy greys, biscuit beiges and ice blues for the inconspicuous in you and luxurious brocades make up beautiful jackets, not unlike those gentlemen’s smoking jackets of a bygone vintage era. The catwalk darkens and we’re engulfed in black. Black lace, black wool, black silk – all combine to forge pretty, yet formal, dresses and blouses. I’m rarely taken in by designs in black, but these really are lovely. The vintage inspired shoes and patterned tights play a key part in the presentation, complimenting a largely conservative but beautiful collection.

My height has failed me and my photographs are painfully poor, but I leave contented and pleased to have spied a wonderful show.

All photography by Akeela Bhattay

Categories ,A/W 2011, ,Avril Kelly, ,Catwalk review, ,Classic, ,Clements Ribeiro, ,Ethical Fashion, ,Formal, ,Inacio Ribeiro, ,Jenny Robins, ,lfw, ,London Fashion Week, ,Northumberland House, ,Suzanne Clements, ,The Show Space, ,Upcycling, ,vintage

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Amelia’s Magazine | London Fashion Week A/W 2011 Catwalk Review: Clements Ribeiro


Illustration by Avril Kelly

Finally escaping the intermittent drizzle, pilule I find myself standing in a beautiful hall within the restored Northumberland House in Trafalgar Square. The ornate ceiling is touching the sky and the splendour of its Victorian past hushes the crowd. The audience here appears slightly subdued. Notepads out, here pens uncapped and eyes focused on the catwalk. Tiptoeing at the back, viagra 40mg I strain to view the runway. I’m anticipating what Suzanne Clements and Inacio Ribeiro will bring to the catwalk to tease our fashion palettes. Spotlights alight causing the last of the whispers to subside and all gaze expectantly at the white path ahead, as the soundtrack strikes.

Enter structured jackets embellished with heraldic embroidery and printed silk skirts, jumpsuits and dresses in autumn colours, burnt orange and berry red. The prints vary, from pretty paisleys to luxurious leopard print. I’m not usually attracted to animal print, but I’m longing for the paisley meets leopard print dress, sporting blue silk detail on the neck and shoulders. It’s simple and elegant but not at all banal. High necks, low cinched waists and midi length skirts in vivid blue and red make for graceful dresses that suggest a marriage of Victoriana and 1970s styles. Bold and neutral colours follow, sheathed in dazzling gems that revive nostalgia for the 1950s.


Live catwalk illustration by Jenny Robins

The colours fade into cloudy greys, biscuit beiges and ice blues for the inconspicuous in you and luxurious brocades make up beautiful jackets, not unlike those gentlemen’s smoking jackets of a bygone vintage era. The catwalk darkens and we’re engulfed in black. Black lace, black wool, black silk – all combine to forge pretty, yet formal, dresses and blouses. I’m rarely taken in by designs in black, but these really are lovely. The vintage inspired shoes and patterned tights play a key part in the presentation, complimenting a largely conservative but beautiful collection.

My height has failed me and my photographs are painfully poor, but I leave contented and pleased to have spied a wonderful show.

All photography by Akeela Bhattay

Categories ,A/W 2011, ,Avril Kelly, ,Catwalk review, ,Classic, ,Clements Ribeiro, ,Ethical Fashion, ,Formal, ,Inacio Ribeiro, ,Jenny Robins, ,lfw, ,London Fashion Week, ,Northumberland House, ,Suzanne Clements, ,The Show Space, ,Upcycling, ,vintage

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