The Fancy Pants Report

It was a dream that came upon me too quickly to process. I arrived in London one day before the London Fashion Weekend started, I saw the signs on Oxford Street, saw models walking around everywhere, thinking to myself, if only. The week commenced with move-in and tours and orientations and meetings with advisors and new friends. Monday was when one of my new friends, Haley, started talking about Fashion Weekend; I knew we would be good friends from the start. All of the sudden, she asks if I wanted to go. At this point I’m thinking, Of course I want to go, but it seemed so far out of reach, but we did.

The show commenced just behind those walls.

Trying to look like I belong.

There is something about fashion week that I could not put my finger on until now, three days later. When riding the tube or going to the market, we never consider the art of clothing, we consider our own agenda, the people around us. It is rare that we note "I want what she’s wearing," or "She pulls that off incredibly well." Fashion week is about the garments and not us, it is an art show. One that, when on the streets, we don’t consider because of life’s distractions. And so on, I argue that fashion, much like art, is illusive, varying and impossible in the greatest sense.

 

Our Show covered four trends that dominated the catwalks of several designers this season. The trend labelled One and Only commenced the catwalk with its straight lines and colour blocking. The models’ severe expressions made the look all the better, bold and head-to-toe hues marked this a trend for the fall. It screamed confidence through mixed textures. I label it remarkable.

Somerset House on the Strand

Excitedly awaiting our first ever fashion show!

The Music stopped and the lights dimmed, perhaps a way to allow us viewers to process what we had just experienced.

 

Candy Crush was next: a way to wear fall pieces like heavy coats and trousers, but employ light neutral tones with nudes and pastels. It focused on strict tailoring of the coats. The models’ simple low ponytails complemented the designs’ structure.

 

New track; lights back on.

 

Jungle Fever was next. This was an interesting trend: the structure of the clothing did not match what they were made of. There was a mix of flowy and controlled pieces with bold and strong materials and prints. Perhaps that is why it was called jungle fever: because you cannot put this trend in one category, it’s too wild and the models’ labouring prowl was incomparable.

Mindblowing

My second favorite gown of the day, shown in Fairy Tale Ending.

All of the most important pieces worn in the entirety of the trend show.

Last but not least, my favourite. A Fairy Tale Ending. I may have pre-decided that this was going to by my favourite, but the gowns we saw went beyond my expectations. For as long as I can remember, I have been following J Mendel, Oscar de la Renta and Elie Saab. Unfortunately, I was unable to experience the later, but two out of tree is not bed in my books. The trend was straight out of an original Grimm Brothers storybook. It was spooky with a romantic twist. There were cloaks and a range of colours with sparkling embellishments and a touch of leather. Enchanting to say the least.

It was a dream, a complete and total dream.

Hanna Neitzke is the Fall 2014 CEA MOJO in London, England.  She is currently a Senior at Humboldt State University.

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