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Amelia’s Magazine | Treasure Jewellery Show 2013: Review

Treasure jewellery show review
This year I got my first taste of the Treasure jewellery show at Somerset House, a vast showcase now on its sixth outing during Jewellery Week. Here’s the familiar talents and hot new jewellery discoveries that caught my eye.

The first thing to grab my attention was this unusual ostrich little finger ring in rose gold with an iolite gemstone by Dominique Lucas. Dominique trained with master craftsmen in Italy, Mexico and London. She’s created some bold pieces based on animals, and I love her current collection, featuring big bullet gem rings.

A clever neon lot display for silicone bracelets by #brazelights
Brazelights had created this clever neon lit display to show off modern silicone bracelets.

Ros Millar Nugget_Stud_Earrings
I couldn’t get close to Ros Millar‘s stand – an young award winning designer from Northern Ireland, who creates on trend organic metal jewels with a ‘Gothic Luxe‘ feel.

Tessa Metcalfe jewellery
<a target="_blank" href="http://www.vimeo.com/59420973" rel="noopener">http://www.vimeo.com/59420973</a>
Jeweller Tessa Metcalfe looked amazing in her own jewels. This young jeweller trained as an illustrator and has been championed by the Secret Emporium for some time. Now I see why her bold bird claw rings and necklaces are fast gaining a loyal following. Check out her innovative video look book above.

Rosita Bonita jewellery
Beautiful Rosita Bonita looked gorgeous sporting her new embossed leather collection (inspired by a combination of Japanese and Spanish styles) at her fabulously appointed stand. She’s another jeweller who trained as an illustrator before settling on her profession – read our recent interview with Rosita Bonita here.

An outsized showpiece ring containing fruit Atelier Laibach
This outsized showpiece ring containing fruit was worn by Kerstin Laibach of Atelier Laibach. She is an entirely ethical jeweller, so nothing is newly mined and her collection is vegan friendly. This wasn’t something I have ever considered before, but apparently many of the items used in the day to day production of jewellery feature animal products.

Ecoluxe London has recently launched a shopping site to compliment its trade fair presence during London Fashion Week, and their stand featured a variety of represented designers. This pretty necklace of found objects is by Sarah Drew, who finds all sorts of interesting things to work with on the beach where she lives in Cornwall.

Öhlund silver mens jewellery
These recycled sterling silver pendants are by men’s jewellery designer Öhlund and are inspired by aviation and industrial design. I think the shapes in the Boneyard 13 collection look like bullets or cartridges.

Jeweller Myia Bonner builds on her deconstruction of the traditional diamond shape with these dangly earrings. As one part of the Metric Collective she’ll be showcasing new work at their annual pop up store between 7th July – 1st September on Columbia Road.

It’s not often that I am gobsmacked. But three quarters of my way around Treasure this is what I stumbled upon: astonishing moving stainless steel rings by Atelier Michael Berger. His kinetic jewels swing around the finger on invisible mechanisms as if by magic.

Abby Carnevale jewellery New York

Another beautiful jeweller wearing her wares was New York based Abby Carnevale, who solders fine chains together with gems to create intricate waterfall designs. This was her first visit to London, but she hopes to return again.

Michele White jewellery
Without a doubt the most fabulous person I met at Treasure was Michele White, sporting amazing thigh length hair that was dip dyed purple to match her clothes. It was a delight to talk to this former ceramics teacher turned master jeweller and gemologist based in the famous Birmingham jewellery quarter. Her timeless art nouveau inspired designs (below) make the most of the natural beauty of opals and other gems, and really stood out amongst a sea of very similar jewels.

michele white gold opal ring
Michele White opal earrings
Now I can’t wait to discover more graduate talent at the New Designers shows!

Written by Amelia Gregory on Monday June 24th, 2013 9:13 pm

Categories ,Abby Carnevale, ,Atelier Laibach, ,Atelier Michael Berger, ,Birmingham, ,Boneyard 13, ,Brazelights, ,Cornwall, ,Dominique Lucas, ,Ecoluxe London, ,Gothic Luxe, ,jewellery, ,Jewellery Week, ,Kerstin Laibach, ,Metric Collective, ,Michele White, ,Myia Bonner, ,Öhlund, ,review, ,Ros Millar, ,Rosita Bonita, ,Sarah Drew, ,Secret Emporium, ,Somerset House, ,Tessa Metcalfe, ,Treasure

Amelia’s Magazine | UCA Rochester: Graduate Fashion Week Catwalk Review

Graduate collection by Elisabeth Boström

UCA Rochester is always a hot ticket at Graduate Fashion Week. It usually takes a late evening slot, so there’s always a more ritzy atmosphere. This year was no different.

Graduate collection by Emily Houghton

When I joined the queue I was pleased to note that I was maybe 10 or 15 attendees from the front. ‘Marvellous’, I thought to myself as I politely waited. As the door-opening grew closer, one by one various other press, sponsors and ‘VIPs’ did that hilarious thing that only fashion people know how to do. I marvel every time it happens. It’s the Magical Fashion Queue Jumper. Here’s a quick step-by-step guide:

1. Look for somebody you’ve vaguely met once, follow on Twitter, are connected with on LinkedIn, or somebody who looks like somebody you know;
2. Scream ‘HAI darling!‘ at them and swing from their neck with glee;
3. Go a bit red, hoping nobody has noticed you’ve been incredibly rude and pushed in;
Voila – you’ve jumped the queue.

Sigh. Somehow I don’t think I’ll ever be able to do it. It’s just so impolite. I’d tell you how I then got kicked off the front row but managed to get back onto it with half a dozen seats going begging, but then I’d just be a big moaner.

All photography by Matt Bramford

Anyway, yes, back to the show. An usual start unfolded – I’d already noticed that there were a sole pair of shoes and a selection of menswear on hangers to the right of the stage. The lights dimmed and a model appeared wearing white underclothes. Two men wearing white lab coats, I presume students, dressed the man in silence. As soon as he was dressed and styled, the lights shone brightly, the music pounded, and the tattoo-clad model stormed the catwalk.

Here’s a round-up of my favourites from UCA Rochester:

Daniel Holliday

It was Daniel’s model who was dressed live on stage and opened the show. It was a strong menswear opener, with digital print shirts, tweed blazers with contrasting sleeves and flashes of neon green juxtaposed with a dark colour palette.

Lucy Mellor

Graduate collection by Lucy Mellor

Lucy’s collection was our first taste of Rochester womenswear. Fitted knee-length dresses were sculptured at the shoulders and hips, creating futuristic silhouettes, embellished with organic felt shapes.

Richard Sun

Graduate collection by Richard Sun

The future according to Richard Sun sees women wearing utilitarian geometric dresses accessorised with wire cages. Inspired by Hong Kong architecture, this was an innovative fashion vision.

Olivia Salmon

Graduate collection by Olivia Salmon

Juxtaposed to Richard’s fashion future came Olivia Salmon‘s playful collection of cute floral dresses. Silhouettes were soft and prints were hand-drawn – a welcome break from digital. Models were styled with clusters of flowers in this uplifting collection.

Olivia Salmon graduate collection by Sandra Contreras

Emily Houghton

Graduate collection by Emily Houghton

Emily also took her inspiration from architecture – notably Richard Rogers‘ ‘inside-out’ Lloyds building. Visible seams and outer pocket bags explore this concept – a dark colour palette with some flashes of neon and some elements of sportswear made this a really polished collection.

Annie Mae Harris

Blink and you might miss Annie Mae’s attention to detail in this fusion of print and materials. Soft silks and organzas were treated with hypnotic, organic swirls that elegantly floated by. Leather accessories, including a headpiece embellished with gold teeth, added an extra dimension.

Jenny Prismall

Graduate collection by Jenny Prismall

War Horse was the inspiration for Jenny’s womenswear and was one of my favourite collections of the week. Military cuts were given a chicer treatment. Leather straps like horses reins were carefully added to garments creating a luxurious look with a hint of kink, whilst also sculpting silhouettes. Oh, and the digital-print sunset – just wonderful.

Marianne Sørensen

Graduate collection by Marianne Sørensen

Marianne presented a beautiful all-black collection teaming luxury materials with dynamic cuts: one of the most polished presentations of the week.

Callum Burman
Callum’s modern Miami Vice male had me squealing. Influence had come from the TV show and the Art Deco buildings of Miami (love). Cropped-sleeve shirts, short shorts, oversized sweater and skinny trousers all in a range of cool pastel colours. It was fun, relaxed and infinitely wearable.

Sharon Osborne
Sharon presented a beautiful collection of flattering, body-hugging dresses of varying glamorous lengths. Ruching around the necks and into seams was used to dazzling effect, with cloud-like forms printed onto the garments. But it was Sharon’s transparent perspex accessories that really caught my eye; beautiful, organic shapes creeping up models’ arms.

Elisabeth Boström

Graduate collection by Elisabeth Boström

Elisabeth’s offering was another contender for my favourite collection of this year’s graduates. Sweeping frocks in gorgeous silks featured digital streaks of varying bright colours fused with natural browns. Elisabeth was inspired by natural vs. unnatural, effortlessly blending the two together. Some dresses were embellished with hair for a fashion-forward look with maximum appeal.

Emma Beaumont

Graduate collection by Emma Beaumont

I wasn’t at all surprised to see Emma’s collection nominated for the Gold Award at the Gala ceremony the following evening. Inspired by harvest, Emma’s feminine cuts and adept use of the most visually stimulating materials provided a real treat. I loved the aesthetic appeal of the opening woven coat and a gold woven dress.

Until next year, UCA Rochester!

Written by Matt Bramford on Tuesday June 19th, 2012 9:24 am

Categories ,2012, ,Annie Mae Harris, ,Callum Burman, ,catwalk, ,Daniel Holliday, ,Elisabeth Bostrom, ,Emily Houghton, ,Emma Beaumont, ,fashion, ,GFW, ,Graduate Fashion Week, ,Jenny Prismall, ,knitwear, ,Lucy Mellor, ,Marianne Sorensen, ,Matt Bramford, ,menswear, ,Olivia Salmon, ,review, ,Richard Sun, ,Sandra Contreras, ,Sharon Osbourne, ,UCA Rochester, ,University, ,Womenswear

Amelia’s Magazine | Vita Gottlieb: London Fashion Week A/W 2014 Catwalk Review

Vita Gottlieb A/W 2014 by xplusyequals

Vita Gottlieb A/W 2014 by xplusyequals.

We ran a preview of Vita Gottlieb’s fourth collection, so I had an inkling of what to expect from the Fashion Fringe finalist before she took to the Fashion Scout catwalk for the first time for a stunning rendition of what she does best: combining sumptuous textiles with an intriguing silhouette.

Vita Gottlieb AW 2014-photography by Amelia Gregory

Vita Gottlieb by Kit Wagstaff

Vita Gottlieb by Kit Wagstaff.

Vita Gottlieb names this collection Caged, after an imaginary film featuring Grace Jones in a Majaraja’s palace. The idea of birds in flight at sunset (this would obviously be a beautiful cinematic experience) influenced the romantic warmth of the fiery colour palette, with prints and textiles rich in multi-coloured spice hues. A more literal interpretation came in the form of birds floating across a pretty landscape print.

Vita Gottlieb AW 2014-photography by Amelia Gregory

The caged theme appeared in a skirt and jacket made up entirely of strips, and appeared in more commercial form as glossy black bindings, highlighting womanly curves. Alongside skin tight separates there were also boxy jackets and eye-catching layered maxi skirts. Furled scarfs gave detail to the neck, buckled arm cuffs added edge and sheer and textured black fabrics were rendered especially stunning with the addition of multi coloured appliqué details. The show closed with a magnificent yellow dress, split to the upper thigh and resplendent with a dramatic zig-zag design.

Vita Gottlieb AW 2014-photography by Amelia Gregory

Vita Gottlieb AW 2014-end

All photography by Amelia Gregory.

Written by Amelia Gregory on Monday March 3rd, 2014 5:17 pm

Categories ,A/W 2014, ,Caged, ,Fashion Fringe, ,Fashion Scout, ,Grace Jones, ,Kit Wagstaff, ,Majaraja, ,review, ,Vita Gottlieb, ,xplusyequals

Amelia’s Magazine | Yeashin: Fashion Scout Ones to Watch A/W 2013 Catwalk Review

Yeashin A/W 2013 by Sylwia Szyszka.

South Korean designer Yeashin Kim‘s Woodland collection juxtaposed traditional Korean dress with inspiration from the swinging 60s. The colourful results built on the look she has been honing since completing her studies in fine arts and then attending the London College of Fashion.

Yeashin A/W 2013 by Laura Hickman.

ones to watch yeashin AW 2013-photo by Amelia Gregory

Yeashin A/W 2013 by Victoria Wright.

A multitude of textures were thrown together and somehow emerged victorious. Oversized embellished hats, plenty of colourful trims and digitally printed woodgrain based on Korean furniture lent the collection a fairytale feel, with bespoke woolly boots adorned with pompoms adding to the idea that the models could have stepped off the pages of a children’s book (no bad thing in my world).

Yeashin A/W 2013 by Laura Hickman.

ones to watch yeashin AW 2013-photo by Amelia Gregory

Yeashin-by-Sylwia-Szyszka
Yeashin A/W 2013 by Sylwia Szyszka.

Skirts were predominantly short and flared, collars adorned with on trend details, cuffs beautifully buttoned or trimmed in wool. Knitwear came in the form of a dotty cape, bolero and cosy looking chequerboard coat. Yeashin‘s was a delightfully unique collection in this time of monochrome madness, and all the better for it.

ones to watch yeashin AW 2013-photo by Amelia Gregory

All photography by Amelia Gregory.

<a target="_blank" href="http://www.vimeo.com/59188092" rel="noopener">http://www.vimeo.com/59188092</a>

Written by Amelia Gregory on Tuesday February 26th, 2013 12:53 pm

Categories ,A/W 2013, ,Fashion Scout, ,Freemasons’ Hall, ,knitwear, ,Laura Hickman, ,London College of Fashion, ,London Fashion Week, ,Ones To Watch, ,review, ,South Korean, ,Sylwia Szyszka, ,Victoria Wright, ,woodland, ,Yeashin, ,Yeashin Kim

Amelia’s Magazine | Yifang Wan, Fashion Scout Merit Award Winner: London Fashion Week A/W 2013 Catwalk Review

Yifang Wan A/W 2013 by Gabriel Ayala

Fashion Week A/W 2013 got off to a cracking start on Friday, for anybody who actually turned up. I didn’t, thanks to the effects of an anti-Valentine’s cocktail binge, instead spent the evening in bed with fish and chips and half a bottle of Rioja. So it was Saturday morning where my season started, heading as I did to this season’s Fashion Scout Merit Award winner – Yifang Wan.

Photography by Amelia Gregory

Previous Merit Award winners including David Koma, Felder Felder, William Tempest and Leutton Postle have all gone on to establish successful labels and the pressure of such previous acclaim must be terrifying — but its effects weren’t evident in this polished collection by Yifang Wan.

Yifang Wan A/W 2013 by Dom&Ink

All other photography by Matt Bramford

Record numbers packed the ‘white room’ of the Freemasons’ Hall, and so my view of the show was framed by a diminutive Frenchman wielding a vogue.fr microphone like a maniac and a very excitable girl with masses of hair. Her head was all over the place trying to secure a good shot and I was forced to perform a strange sort of swaying dance with my zoom lens, not unlike an Emperor penguin.

Yifang Wan A/W 2013 by Dom&Ink

I’d briefly taken an interest in Wan‘s work when the Merit prize was awarded at the beginning of the year, and her previous collections draw inspiration from her Asian heritage and long, draped silhouettes dominate her previous outings. So it was no surprise, in the best possible way, to see these themes continued for A/W 2013, with inspiration from performance artist ‪Marina Abramović‬, most famous for sitting in a smock and staring at New Yorkers in the MOMA for 700 hours.

Only four rich colours featured in this collection – deep blue, green, red and black in thick fabrics. Jackets came with triangular slices removed almost with abandon as fabrics draped asymmetrically and architecturally. Almost every piece skimmed the floor, while fabric swayed and draped in different directions with emphasis on Far Eastern cuts. Each piece was accessorised with intriguing angular sculptural pieces, some worn around necks, others carried almost like weaponry.

Yifang Wan is no stranger to awards, having won the L’Oreal Professionel Award at Saint Martins as an MA student. Her £25,000 prize this season will hopefully propel the designer’s label in the direction it deserves.

Written by Matt Bramford on Tuesday February 19th, 2013 1:31 pm

Categories ,A/W 2013, ,A/W’13, ,catwalk, ,Central Saint Martins, ,East, ,Fashion Scout, ,Gabriel Ayala, ,Kimono, ,marina abramovic, ,Matt Bramford, ,Merit Award, ,Orient, ,review, ,Yifang Wan

Amelia’s Magazine | SANKUANZ presented by GQ China: London Collections: Men S/S 2015 Catwalk Review

SANKUANZ S/S 2015 by Gareth A Hopkins

After two seasons representing Kay Kwok, GQ China switch their attentions to Xiamen-based designer Shangguan Zhe, better known as SANKUANZ. As is often the case, I knew nothing about this up-and-coming label, but a debut London Collections: Men showcase is probably a good place to start.

SANKUANZ S/S 2015 by Chris Sav

A combination of an exodus to Milan and a debut catwalk show meant that inside Victoria House wasn’t exactly heaving. Staff rushed to seat everybody as near to the front as possible, so I took a spot on the front row despite having a standing ticket.

All photography by Matt Bramford

The first dozen or so looks were strong, but I felt like I’d seen it before. Long white lab coats had been embellished with embroidered black designs, inspired by Russian prison tattoos, ranging from obscure slogans to graphic phalluses. These coats were a fusion between 18th century frock coats and modern day sportswear. Translucent crew neck tops, crisp shirts and mesh hoodies, all in white, were styled underneath, flashing mouthpieces were used and Raf Simons-esque futuristic footwear completed the looks. Some pretty silly brightly-coloured fur shorts were the only break from white.

During a short pause afterwards I thought, ‘yes, I quite like it, some wearable pieces, a bit small as a collection perhaps’ and some other nonsense. Then, almost from nowhere, a model appeared wearing what I can only describe as a giant pair of brightly coloured papier-mâché claw hands. ‘Oh, here we go’ I thought to myself as I frantically tried to take pictures and pick my jaw up from the floor.

Without visual aids I couldn’t tell you a single item of clothing that the models were wearing during this ‘latter stage’ of the show, but I could remember enormous polka-dot lobster claws, Popeye-like forearms and gigantic acid-painted hands making an ‘OK’ sign. It was like a ludicrous tribute to Emoji and I enjoyed every bloody minute.

Looking back on the collection, these gimmicks were paired with some pretty decent garments. Black sweatshirts made more of the Russian criminal emblems and the frock coat in black was less lab-coat and more wearable, but that isn’t what I’ll remember this collection for.

Written by Matt Bramford on Tuesday June 24th, 2014 5:52 pm

Categories ,catwalk, ,Chris Sav, ,fashion, ,Gareth A Hopkins, ,GQ China, ,LCMSS2015, ,London Collections Men, ,Matt Bramford, ,menswear, ,Popeye, ,Raf Simons, ,review, ,SANKUANZ, ,Shangguan Zhe, ,SS15, ,Style, ,Victoria House

Amelia’s Magazine | Yifang Wan: London Fashion Week A/W 2014 Catwalk Review

Yifang Wang A/W 2014 by Slowly The Eggs aka Maria Papadimitriou

Yifang Wan A/W 2014 by Slowly The Eggs aka Maria Papadimitriou.

Yifang Wan showcased a sleek collection accessorised with dagger sharp neckwear as a Fashion Scout Merit Award winner this time last year, so it was great to catch up with her again. Against a backdrop of glitchy beats she sent models down the catwalk in a range of seductive wintery hues – lilac, glittery navy blue, deep plum and grey, paired with bare legs and the simplest of black heels.

Yifang Wang AW 2014-photography by Amelia Gregory

Wan’s talent lies in the creation of super desirable clothing which nevertheless bears a unique twist – this season boxy jackets, simple flip skirts and elegant tapered trousers in wool and mohair were variously cut with patch pockets, pleats, wide collars and dangling lengths of fabric.

Yifang Wang AW 2014-photography by Amelia Gregory

Asymmetric shapes, apron layers and a detachable collar feature gave yet another element of interest to this wonderful collection. Yifang Wan calls this ‘simplistic workwear’ and indeed it is – the perfect way to dress for modern working life at the desk and dashing between meetings. I think she will soon amass countless fawning fans, eager to adopt the Yifang Wan way of dressing for work.

Yifang Wang AW 2014-photography by Amelia Gregory

All photography by Amelia Gregory.

Written by Amelia Gregory on Wednesday February 26th, 2014 10:03 am

Categories ,A/W 2014, ,Fashion Scout, ,lfw, ,Maria Papadimitriou, ,Merit Award Winner, ,review, ,Slowly the Eggs, ,Yifang Wan

Amelia’s Magazine | SIBLING: London Collections: Men S/S 2014 Catwalk Review

SIBLING S/S 2014 by Gareth A Hopkins

Oh GOD I love SIBLING. Every season they manage to come up with an amazing theme that makes you wonder how they do it, time and time again. There was an East End boozers pub crawl, fairgrounds, even wayward jailbirds and their mothers. This fifth birthday season was no exception.

All photography by Matt Bramford

West Side Story became ‘East Side Story‘ in this glorious romp through American youth culture with a British twist, taking inspiration from the 1961 film and Saul Bass‘s iconic graphics. Any collection inspired by Saul Bass’s iconic graphics gets my vote.

SIBLING S/S 2014 by Gareth A Hopkins

I settled into my perfect standing spot, sandwiched between a guy wielding an iPad (give over) as if it were a shield and a speaker belting out Gee, Officer Krupkee. The entrance to the catwalk had been daubed in Richard Woods‘s signature woodprint, and just inside I noticed a huge sign saying ‘SMILES PLEASE’ with a cheeky felt-tip drawing of a grin. Well, it would have been rude not to, and so I grinned as wide as I could as the first model appeared.

The masculinity of the Jets and gang dress codes were first explored – cropped denim jackets and oversized bomber jackets featured enlarged JET BOY motifs on the reverse. Models were styled with slick quiffs and huge smiles – oh, hang on, the sign was for them! What a brilliant idea. It took all my strength not to start weeping as each handsome devil appeared, grinning and genuinely enjoying themselves.

From the streets to the gym; up next came polos, cardigans and shorts in Richard Woods‘ aforementioned print. Dreamy colours – mint green, lilac and Shark blue were indebted on the press release to the Ndebele tribe and West Side Story cinematographer Daniel L Fapp.

No SIBLING collection would be complete without chunky knits and a hint of leopard print, and die hard fans weren’t disappointed on either count. Cardigans and cropped jackets in blue peppered the sportswear, as did a thick, black mesh knit at the beginning of the show.

The most dramatic pieces combined scoobie strings (yes, like the bracelets) with American track and field sportswear shapes to create show-stopping tops and shorts in white, neon greens and acid pink.

A knit emblazoned with a ’5′ emblem in stars closed this fifth anniversary show, SIBLING‘s best yet IMHO.

Written by Matt Bramford on Wednesday June 26th, 2013 9:37 am

Categories ,catwalk, ,Daniel L Fapp, ,East Side Story, ,fashion, ,Gareth A Hopkins, ,Jets, ,knitwear, ,LCM, ,LCMSS14, ,Leopard Print, ,London Collections Men, ,Matt Bramford, ,menswear, ,Ndebele, ,Officer Krupkee, ,review, ,Richard Woods, ,Saul Bass, ,scoobie bracelets, ,Sharks, ,Sibling, ,smiles, ,SS14, ,West Side Story

Amelia’s Magazine | Youjia Jin AW15: London Fashion Week Catwalk Review

Youjia Jin AW15-photo by Amelia Gregory 9
Everything about the Youjia Jin collection was well considered. Perfect tailoring was given a unique and fanciful twist, deftly playing with usual proportions and stylistic norms. A coat appeared one thing from the front and another from the back, with a swishing cape attached to a smartly tailored jacket. Sheer was combined with wool, cable knit provided detail on a pleated suit dress and gossamer light cascading ruffles adorned skirt waists, sleeves and hems. A traditional single breasted suit collar became the main feature on a coat dress. My favourite piece was a beautiful pinstripe wrap over dress that flared elegantly over a dark underskirt: so flattering and different.

Youjia Jin AW15-photo by Amelia Gregory 1

All photography by Amelia Gregory.

Youjia Jin AW 15/16 from FASHION SCOUT on Vimeo.

Written by Amelia Gregory on Friday February 27th, 2015 2:44 pm

Categories ,A/W 2015, ,AW15, ,catwalk, ,London Fashion Week, ,review, ,Show report, ,Youjia Jin

Amelia’s Magazine | Sketch blog of the Truimph Inspiration Awards to kick off London Fashion Week

triumph inspiration awards – hair and makeup – lfw2010 – jenny robins
triumph inspiration awards - hair and makeup - lfw2010 - jenny robins This is me pretending to be a fashion blogger – Hi!

Please check out Amelia’s write up of the show which has ace photos of the outfits, here although I’m not sure if I agree with her division of them. Or if your here for catwalk kicks primarily, online feel free to scroll to the bottom of this article, discount where you can see my ace catwalk sketches.

They could tell I was pretending I think; when I arrived at the Triumph Inspiration Awards it was the same time all the waitresses were arriving and they just assumed I was one of them, signed me in and gave me a pass, I very nearly spent the night offering canapés. It’s a fair cop, certainly a role I’m more used to performing. But I’m glad I didn’t because the backstage access organised for bloggers meant I got the opportunity to do some drawing backstage at an epic fashion event. Check out some of these anthropological gems:

triumph inspiration awards - lights - lfw2010 - jenny robins triumph inspiration awards - spray tan touch up - lfw2010 - jenny robins
As I entered the area set up in the huge industrial space that had been set up for the show (in the decor they chose to accent this rather than disguise it – which worked very well) I heard someone shout “If you’re chicken fillets have been checked you have to go back into hair and makeup! Thank you!” Priceless. Being a model must be a proper weird job.

triumph inspiration awards 3 - models eating - lfw2010 - jenny robins

Some models eating (yes, they do).

It all took me right back to many hours spent needing to be not too far from a toilet in Laos and Thailand in cheap hotels watching Fashion TV for hours on end. I love Fashion TV! (must be said in Scandinavian accent) I managed to speak to and draw 3 of the designers, my interviewing skills were not exactly up there, I asked Isabella Newell if she had anything she would like me to say about her work; “not really”…

triumph inspiration awards - great britain - lfw2010 - jenny robins
She let me draw her though, and told me about her outfit, an honest to goodness Burberry Jacket, and the rest by designers I have not heard of but who are probably very impressive. I was relieved when I asked Austria’s Isolde Mayer where her scalf was from and found it was in the sale at H&M. Her design was one of Amelia’s favourites I think, very elegant and strong.

triumph inspiration awards - Bulgaria - Austria - lfw2010 - jenny robins
I was also fortuitous in speaking to the winner (before we knew he was the winner) Nikolay Bojilov who was really nice and encouraging. I made his nose too big from the pressure. His outfit is really beautiful, it’s conceptual and still wearable. Should have seen it coming. Although I have to say I was rooting for Japan’s super cute bird and flowers design (it wasn’t really done justice on the catwalk, but I did a sketch from the actual garment hanging up backstage – beautiful) or Norway’s cheeky two piece covered in metallic circles and fans with what looked like a retro swimming cap accompaniment.

triumph inspiration awards - japan - lfw2010 - jenny robins

A bit of background: Triumph make loads of underwear and stuff, for the last 3 years they’ve been doing these inspiration awards, looking for exciting stuff from international students in the underwear vein. It’s pretty amazing, they put on all these heats in the different countries to find the winner and bring it all together in the final show. The theme this year is Shape Sensation, since according to the spiel, a major role of underwear is “perfecting” one’s shape. When they invent a pair of shaping long johns that can elongate my legs by 10 inches, I will be first in line, needless to say, it’s a comedy nicety.

But the theme ties in with Triumph’s new line of body shaping wear that is designed to be sexier than your average stomach panel tights or distressing beige girdle. There were 6 models posing in these at the reception and they did look nice. So the theme is a bit of a dual personality. On the one hand Shape Sensation – optimising your figure for the office Christmas party, on the other Shape Sensation – high concept fashion design using bold experimental shapes that distort the figure, like Isabella Newell’s (Great Britain) jutting structural design and Manuel Marte’s (Germany) entry which gives the wearer and insect like dowager hump. Neither of which you’d particularly want to wear under clothing, but that’s obviously not the point. They are exciting and beautiful catwalk designs. It’s for the show, the spectacle, the exploding paint balloons (France’s Sofie Insam’s entry).

I confess I couldn’t quite believe it when I realised the carrying a Sydney Opera House on your back design by Tovah Cottle was actually the entry from Australia! What was the brief at that national heat? Represent a cliché of your nationality? Did it narrowly beat corks swinging from hat and Kylie’s face designs? I’m sorry, it’s a stunning design, but really?

Now, forgive me actual fashion fans, but I’m going to go out on a limb and guess that it’s not particularly unusual for design competitions to be all about the innovation and crazy cutting edge stuff in the initial stages, but to make sure some actually vaguely commercial wearable stuff gets through so that when it comes to the awarding of the prize including the production deal they are able to pick something that walks the happy line in the middle.

There were some spectacular designs on the catwalk last night, here’s my five second impression drawings I did of them as they came out. They are pretty ace eh? I mention again, for actual photos of the actual outfits please check out Amelia’s write up here.

triumph inspiration awards - catwalk 1 - lfw2010 - jenny robins

triumph inspiration awards - catwalk 2 - lfw2010 - jenny robins

I also did a not particularly great drawing of Adam Garcia, which I am including only because Amelia doesn’t know who he is. He is a tap dancer. I super love the TV show Got to Dance he was the judge on so I’m pre-disposed to approve, he was a bit misogynistic in his comments tho, probably wasn’t really sure what he was doing presenting an fashion award and wanted to make sure everyone knew he definitely wasn’t gay. Who cares? Also. I hate tap. Why spend so much time doing something that is really difficult but looks really easy?

triumph inspiration awards - adam garcia - louise rednap - lfw2010 - jenny robins

Written by jenny robins on Friday September 17th, 2010 5:12 pm

Categories ,backstage, ,fashion, ,illustration, ,Isabella Newell, ,Isolde Mayer, ,London Fashion Week, ,Manuel Marte, ,Nikolay Bojilov, ,review, ,Sketch, ,Sofie Insam, ,Tovah Cottle, ,underwear

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