Photo: Getty
erdem fw18
Erdem
Monday morning was plagued by the torrential rain and killer traffic, but that didn’t stop the crowd from finding all ways possible to get to the National Portrait Gallery on time. Guests were allocated to seats, sectioned off into different coloured rooms. Mine was grey, quite like the sky outside. There couldn’t have been a better location to unveil Canadian Turkish fashion designer, Erdem Moralioglu, fall/winter collection that told the tale of Adele Astaire through ’20s flapper-style dresses and silhouettes with a twist. Black sheer polka dots, in the form of stockings, elbow-length gloves and veils and more, remained the unifying element yet added a fun factor that tied the ultra opulent collection together. Documenting photographs of Astaire’s shiny career proved to have been the key in nailing his vision but the collection also drew references from the American Broadway star’s relationship with English Lord Charles Cavendish, who’s also the son of the 9th Duke of Devonshire. The end result is a perfect combination of modesty, from structural suiting and heavy wool jackets, and glamour—as seen through fabric choices, styling and a signature ’20s-style finger waves. Floral prints were aplenty, as with every Erdem collection, in heavy brocades of dark and romantic hues. On top of that, the brand took their partnership with cult beauty brand, Nars, to a whole new level with a range of specially curated collection of lipsticks, blushes and more.
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David Koma
Showgoers lined the pews at a church for David Koma’s fall/winter collection that referenced Native American dress with a touch of evening glamour. You could almost tell how good of a show it was going to be, considering the fact that only two pews away sat supermodel Jourdan Dunn, Lara Stone and British Vogue's Editor-In-Chief Edward Enninful. The inspiration behind the collection materialized upon discovering ethnographic photographs by Edward S. Curtis. Kira Kira-worthy mirrored embellishments took a futuristic nod at the ’60s references Koma utilised to produce such a sophisticated collection, soon to be making waves on upcoming red carpets in the near future. Minidresses and skirts of all sorts descended in soft buttery leather, some punctuated with thigh high slits and circular metal studs. Feather motifs dominated risque sheer dresses with burnout detailing and beaded embellishment that added gentle movements to otherwise streamlined pieces.
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Nicopanda
Every guest had a one off black ‘Nicopanda’ baseball hat waiting for them on their seats, almost as a premonition that by the end of the show, everyone would kill for a piece from the collection—and it was pretty accurate. The stellar setlist of ’90s hits mixed with current day hip hop favourites set the scene impeccably and accompanied the thrift-store-esque pieces. If three is a crowd, then it’s a crowd worth crashing. The tongue-in-cheek “Smells Like Queen Spirit” collection was a perfect symphony of punk, grunge and hip hop, highly influenced by the ’90s. Think flannels, PVC, clashing prints and not forgetting a cheeky remastered Nicopanda version of Nirvana’s infamous stoned smiley. Nicola Formichetti linked up with legendary hip hop & electronic record label ‘Tommy Boy’ to produce nylon plaid co-ords and bucket hats. The 15-piece collection was a nod to early rave style and British punk rock, as seen through boots, oversized puffer coats in highlighter pink and greens, slogan hoodies and gold chains all around. It was bad and boujee, but in a very enticing way.
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