London Fashion Week opens with tribal-inspired Fashion

LONDON (Reuters) - Artist turned to nature for inspiration on the opening day of London Fashion Week on Friday, showcasing a collection of sheer silk dresses, delicate embroidery and elegant show pieces all featuring a floral-inspired theme. Britain's capital took over the baton from New York, which wrapped up its week with sparkly dresses and bold geometric prints, with a pared-down color palette of fresh pastels and faded dip-dyes. Antoni & Alison opened the day with a series of quirky silk printed dresses, followed by Fyodor Golan, whose show was in the grandiose lounge of the Waldorf Hilton and inspired by Mayan and Aztec cultures. Models floated down the steps in shift dresses, loose kaftans and bold show pieces varying in electric blue, canary yellow, autumnal amber, and bright pink hues, with intricate beading embroidery and tribal-inspired prints and cutouts. "We wanted to show lightness and spirituality and at the same time to have that sexuality there. So it's that contrast but it's not in your face, it's still strong and gives you power but it's very emotional, something that will engage you," Fyodor Podgorny told Reuters after the show. Podgorny along with his partner Golan Frydman has consistently impressed critics since their debut collection two years ago. The duo kept their look neutral, with slicked back ponytails and bare faces on models offset by delicate painted tribal tattoos and intricate facial jewellery covering eyes and noses. Veteran fashion journalist Hilary Alexander said she was impressed by the attention to detail and vibrant colors. "It's not for everybody, a woman who's a minimalist would probably throw up her hands in horror but I happen to love them," Alexander said. Corrie Nielsen told Reuters that her collection, entitled Florilegium, was inspired by the Royal Botanic gardens in London and Japanese artist Makoto Murayama. "Everything has been cut three-dimensionally and shaped, inspired from the flower," Nielsen said. The collection also featured sleek tailored pieces alongside dip-dyed silk blouses and origami-folded jackets in pale yellows, pinks and creams. Sheer dresses embellished with embroidered appliqué details in icy blues, mint greens and lilacs were seen at Bora Aksu. Models were adorned with cut-out felt crowns, sporting braids and back-combed hair, wearing light printed and embroidered gowns inspired by art deco and botanical gardens. "I just wanted to create something that was really light," Aksu said. "There's texture on it but it's very light, there's prints and embroideries and stuff but it's almost like a light layer, so nothing is really heavy. I wanted to make it like air." Romantic florals and pastels defined the opening day of London Fashion Week, but Felder Felder added an edgy twist to their spring collection, teaming bold hues and muted leopard prints with floaty fabrics and shortening hemlines of shredded knitwear dresses. Singer Kate Nash, dressed in a black suede dress and leather jacket, serenaded the crowd as models accessorized with aviator sunglasses and beach hair strutted down the runway in miniscule shorts, dresses with high slits and suits paired with midriff-baring tops. Models swanned through the intimate presentation room in feminine tailored dresses made from light fabrics with prints and woven textures, in an array of pastel hues, at Emilia Wickstead's presentation. The artist said her new collection a twist on Truman Capote's 'swans' and inspired high society dames from the late 1950s who were required to look chic and elegant at social events. "I wanted it to be uplifting, fashion forward and really play on my inspirations a lot," Wickstead told Reuters. "I loved the matador shorts so I played a lot on that, I thought that was quite fresh, keeping summer fun and flirty but at the end of the day, my style is quite sophisticated and neat, so I wanted to make it more playful." Wickstead, who is six months pregnant, was one of the ones to benefit from the "Kate effect" after the Duchess of Cambridge stepped out in some of her fashions. Wickstead told Reuters she wasn't able to comment on her royal client, but did say it was "inspiring" to dress "anyone who is sophisticated and high profile and of a lovely nature and a great look." Middleton isn't the only high-profile client to favor Wickstead's chic artist. "Downton Abbey" actress Laura Carmichael, who wore a dress by Wickstead at New York's prestigious Met Ball Gala earlier this year, praised the latest collection. "She's got such a talent for doing completely classic, simple things and managing to be very dramatic and sexy with it in the most classy way," Carmichael said. (Editing by Paul Casciato)

Leisure-oriented looks hit runways at New York Fashion Week

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Fashion world trendwatchers were validated on Friday when collections by top fashion artist like Nicole Miller and Charlotte Ronson exhibited the predicted influences of casual, athletic and leisure wear. Miller, a favorite of professional women for her wearable, stylish and confident fashions, ventured into a more playful arena for spring 2013, with a dominant theme of floral prints configured in geometric shapes, and tight leggings in stretch leather or mottled prints. The collection, which Miller dubbed "Batteries Not Included" and was meant to suggest improbable juxtapositions, 1980s surrealist art, digital nature and sci-fi, used a palette of teal, soft greys, pink, mushroom and the ubiquitous black. In keeping with another trend this season, hard met soft with Miller topping a white linen dress with a black leather biker jacket. Shorts, which suggested running or track shorts, were well represented, lapels were large and coat and jacket sleeves pushed up. The collection was also heavy on tunics, which were variously rendered in silk and organza or abstract floral silk, paired with tight striped pants or stretch leather leggings. Vests were loose, oversized and flowing, while details were evident in beaded bodices or tank tops. Texture got a nod from separates rendered in leather, and what Miller called pixilated sequin or jacquard, which she employed for tunics and dresses. The looks were decidedly more classic, if similarly leisure-oriented, at Ronson's Friday evening show. The Friday shows spoke to what Ken Downing, fashion director of Neiman Marcus, called "relaxed chic." Ronson, especially popular with younger fashion mavens, showed mostly classic, highly wearable, mostly unstructured looks. Hemlines were short, and midriffs often bare in a collection rendered in shades of soft spring green and yellow, the latter which Ronson dubbed lemonade. But like Miller, Ronson's show emphasized shorts and rompers, and also played hard and soft elements off one another, as in a chain link lace mini-dress and mini-skirt. She also showed several tops dubbed bralettes, which resembled sports bras, in solid or water lily print or midnight leather. A collegiate-inspired concept of varsity vests, cardigans and jackets completed the sporty looks. There were highly feminine styles as well, many with sheer panels in gauzy chiffon. Hemlines ran short, and cutouts lent netted pullovers and draped dresses a sexy edge. Among the bolder pieces were vinyl varsity jackets turned out in electric shades of pink or blue, as well as black. Earlier on Friday, Bahrain-based label Noon by Noor made its New York Fashion Week debut, with socialites Nicky Hilton and Olivia Palermo sitting in the front row. Bahrain royalty Noor Rashid Al Khalifa and Haya Mohammed Al Khalifa showed long flowing silk chiffon skirts and dresses with thigh-high splits, neon pink pants suits, brocade biker jackets and gold metallic jacquards. "Concentrating on sleek minimalist contouring, pared back separates are realized in the most luxurious fabrics," the Noon by Noor collection notes said. "Luxe utilitarian tailoring balances structure and fluidity." Fashion Week continues through the weekend, with Saturday shows by Project Runway winner Christian Siriano, Rebecca Taylor and Alex Herkovitch. Tracy Reese, Diane Von Furstenberg and Zac Posen show their collections on Sunday. (Additional reporting by Michelle Nicholsl; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)