Best of Graduate
Fashion Week
As soon as I knew Graduate Fashion Week was on it was a no
brainer, I had to attend the Best of Graduate Fashion Week show to get a
strong taste of future fashion.
Graduate Fashion Week is all about the next generation of
designers that are destined to have a label all of their own or work in-house
for an established fashion brand. Graduate Fashion Week was founded back in
1991 to help bridge that gap between studying and work. This year saw over
forty universities take to exhibition stands to showcase their work alongside
twenty one immense catwalk shows.
I’m sure all of the graduate’s work of 2014 had a special
intrinsic, genius quality to them but like in industry it’s a competition where
in this year’s show there can only be one winner. The winner of Graduate
Fashion Week 2014 will be picked by the fashion industry’s leading fashion
gurus, picking the best collection from the enchanting show put on at The Old
Truman Brewery on Brick lane.
All of the graduate designers are fighting for a spot in the
twenty one billion pound industry, so the junior designers sent their models
down the runway in the most fierce fashion looks I’ve seen to date. The
standard this year was unprecedented, where you could only be enthralled with
such marvellous works that saw all kinds of inspirations and concepts.
Nurturing raw talent at fashion school is key to success and this has been
proven with emerging British talents like Christopher Kane, Mary Katrantzou and
the more established Stella McCartney, who all once at this very point in their
career have now achieved worldwide recognition.
Honestly it was a bewitching visual spectacle where much of
the young designers’ collections looked like pieces of art and architectural
installations. I instantly fell in love with the work of Kristy Sahota from UCA
Epsom University. Her work oozed a
feminine attitude in pastel purples and shocking cerise pinks. I love this
collection because it’s wearable with an urban inspired twist in pieces that
include oversized hoodies with fur trimmings. This collection was jaw dropping
with designs that had the perfect mix of patterns and textures, juxtaposing
natural furs with netted and shiny nylon-like fabrics.
Jane Acton from Birmingham University showed a collection
that was simple yet stylish and I particularly loved the Amish style
inspiration. This collection had one of
the most distinctive style aesthetics which saw moderately plain pieces with a
subtle twist in the cut of outwear and shirts. I love the way each look was
relaxed with a slightly rugged finish. The styling really made this collection
and I love the way that the plain pieces were layered with floral fabrics.
Outwear is my favourite piece to invest in each season which
is why I loved Laura Lake from Kingston University. Lake displayed a fabulous
collection of Antarctic inspired coats and jackets all of which I wanted. Each
piece oozed a fashion forward luxe as it was all infused with what looked like
Mongolian fur. Oversized was the signature style for this collection where each
piece was completely unique in design, with styles that saw shearling
inspirations to oversized biker jackets to even gillet style pieces.
Rebecca Rimmer from Manchester University had one of the
most memorable collections. The collection was heavily inspired by pop art and
I love the ingenuity of Rimmer’s designs as they were essentially innovative
and wearable pieces of art. The collection saw 2D drawings on garments which
formed the piece itself. The collection saw pieces that ranged from skirts to
dresses to ponchos and even corsets all in captivating silhouettes and bold
colours.
My final favourite look from the show won the Womenswear
Award and the George Gold Award which entitles the winner to £10,000 and a
chance to adapt their collection for the George fashion retailer. Grace Weller
from Bath University created an eloquently chic collection that saw garments
created out of beautiful floral inspired lacelike fabric. The bespoke work that
had gone into developing the fabric in this collection lends to the luxe sultry
style aesthetic that any women would feel divine in as the colours and cuts
complement the curves of the female body.
The future of fashion is so exciting; designers are
constantly developing techniques alongside new technologies which will propel
fashions of the future into dimensions that are just sensational, innovative
and unique!
*This is a post by Lauren from Farfetch. I did not receive any compensation and was not paid to share this on my blog*
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