LFW Day 5 (my 3rd)

Tuesday was quite a relaxed but busy day, mostly by crossing half of London throughout both the morning and afternoon, passing the wonderfully musical Fortnum and Mason on Piccadilly, above. It was then onto Ashish, which I have been going to see for a great number of season's.

The collection was filled by mostly east Asian influences, including Goa rave parties, the Ganges river and palaces in Jaipur. I found it nodding towards the 1990s rave and grunge season, with a smattering of new wave tie-dye, new age symbols such as the smiley face and Ban the Bomb logo as well as an over sized, hedonistic look that came through. But one thing was for sure, Ashish's signature use of sequins and shinny fabrics was out in force and did not disappoint.

Forgive the catwalk shots from Vogue.co.uk, but the BFC tent's lights, for the past few season's, make models come out like white ghosts beyond the second row.

The next stop was to the Bally x Central Saint Martin's collaboration project presentation at The Savoy. I found it quite disappointing was there was only one shoe for each gender. However, the profile of the men's was excellently crafted and the wing tipped upper detail is a sign that heritage and tradition are not going way for AW12.  

The shoes were styled with, what looked like, a sheep hide long coat in cream and some wide legged, wool trousers in a slate grey. Chic, minimal and it put plenty of focus on the shoes.

I love this vintage Bally advertisement - simple, classic and really full of class, the room was decorated in a few more but I couldn't get a clear shot of them all.

I was thrilled to be invited to the Omar Kashoura presentation in Soho but was not sure what to expect. After a quick Vodka Soda, a voice from the corner of the room began reading poetry that referenced east London and contemporary culture. Why? Because Omar was inspired by the poem 'Howl' by Allen Ginsberg as well as the concept of the 1950s and 1960s 'Beat' generation - an era of post World War II writers. 

This Beat generation helped Omar develop the collection into a relaxed, simple and understated collection  that was full of soft draped pieces. With a simplistic approach, there was the notion of a de-cluttered lifestyle that, when heard with the poetry, made me feel the collection was expressive of an uncertain time and place. Over all, it was elegant and simple, yet luxurious by way of textures and contrasting prints. Superb.  

On my way back and forth from Somerset House, I stopped outside this hat shop in Covent Garden as I thought the window made a strong impact through juxtapositions. Look that that traditional bunting, very British, against the re-working of the white bowler hat - traditionally black.

I also stopped into Jimmy Choo's stand-alone Men's store in the Burlington Arcade, where I produced something special for you readers. Keep an eye out for what it is in the coming weeks.