It would appear that the parties of London Fashion Week amount to a bit of a mixed bag (Birkin obviously). I was invited to the Osman aftershow party in Luxx on New Burlington Street in Mayfair on Monday night. I had two tickets. I also managed to bag a super-scarce ELLE Style Awards afterparty ticket. Only one. This posed a problem. Memories of being the only English speaker at a party full of Parisians at my last magazine came back to haunt me - awkward hanging around the edges with a glass of champers didn't really do it for me. I checked around my fashion friends, Nope, not a single one was lucky enough to get an ELLE ticket.
After a long day of weighing up the options - honestly, this was the most important decision I've had to make in quite some time - my gorgeous plus one and I chose to give the ELLE party doormen a whirl. Now, she's a buyer and a very pretty girl to boot so I reckoned there was a chance she could work her magic on the doormen. Our taxi pulled up outside the Great Queen Street address where we were confronted by a queue of fashionistas tusseling for a space inside. We opted to save ourselves the embarrassment of a refusal and hop on over to Osman instead. Once inside, the mood was clear. It was populated by a gaggle of those edgy student types. The ones who look eternally awkward yet think they are teetering on the brink of fashion-fabulousness. All bizarre prints, funny little hats and deeply unflattering shoe choices. It was upsetting to say the least. Curiously, no one we spoke to had actually attended the show. How odd.
At least there was free alcohol. Or so we thought. Approaching the bar we ordered some glasses of white wine. Not possible. Rose? Champagne? Vodka Tonic? No no no. We only have beer. And they called it a fashion party. The "alternative" (read: achingly hip) band started up soon after. We left.
More on the glorious LFW party scene tomorrow...
Showing posts with label Osman. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Osman. Show all posts
Friday, 26 February 2010
Wednesday, 24 February 2010
London Fashion Week: Osman AW10
A thoroughly damp and dreary Monday morning acted as the backdrop to the AW10 Osman show held at Somerset House earlier this week. Despite the rain, hordes turned out to see the young designer's collection, resulting in some badly organised seating queues and less-than-elegant shoving.
Organisation aside, the show got off to an excellent (albeit unusual) start with four models parading down the catwalk simultaneously. Draped navy jersey dresses - hinting at Diane von Furstenburg - clung in all the right places and made a powerful statement. Covetable indeed. The problem lay in fact that, aside from some statement hot pink folder bags carried under the arm and some chic grey Sermoneta gloves, these first four dresses were by far the high point of the entire collection.
A few dashing fur cocoon coats charmed the audience, alongside a few full-length jersey creations in a variety of patterns however for the most part things hit a bum note. Vivid pink and blue in bold 80s prints conjured up images of Saved by The Bell - which, dear readers, isn't always a good thing. Some questionable shapes in the form of wide leg pants and Arabian inspired shirts were on show which made this writer question the whereabouts of a solid theme for the collection. Structured pink dresses with wide bell hems (harking back to the structure of Osman's previous seasons) were accompanied by what can only be described as Amish-style wide brimmed hats. The result was slightly confused, a point which can let down even the best designers - fashion editors love a clear theme (it makes for a nice headline). No doubt the draped and ruched dresses will be clear winners as easy pieces for winter chic but I don't predict any of the later looks making waves in commercial fashion circles. Next time Osman, stick to what you do best and a true star may be born.
Organisation aside, the show got off to an excellent (albeit unusual) start with four models parading down the catwalk simultaneously. Draped navy jersey dresses - hinting at Diane von Furstenburg - clung in all the right places and made a powerful statement. Covetable indeed. The problem lay in fact that, aside from some statement hot pink folder bags carried under the arm and some chic grey Sermoneta gloves, these first four dresses were by far the high point of the entire collection.
A few dashing fur cocoon coats charmed the audience, alongside a few full-length jersey creations in a variety of patterns however for the most part things hit a bum note. Vivid pink and blue in bold 80s prints conjured up images of Saved by The Bell - which, dear readers, isn't always a good thing. Some questionable shapes in the form of wide leg pants and Arabian inspired shirts were on show which made this writer question the whereabouts of a solid theme for the collection. Structured pink dresses with wide bell hems (harking back to the structure of Osman's previous seasons) were accompanied by what can only be described as Amish-style wide brimmed hats. The result was slightly confused, a point which can let down even the best designers - fashion editors love a clear theme (it makes for a nice headline). No doubt the draped and ruched dresses will be clear winners as easy pieces for winter chic but I don't predict any of the later looks making waves in commercial fashion circles. Next time Osman, stick to what you do best and a true star may be born.
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