LFW Diary AW11: Lu Flux

A designer whose charm and wit transcends the constraints of fashion design, Lu Flux has been pioneering ethical fashion on her own terms for several years, fast becoming a firm favourite of mine. If like me, fashion with heaps of character is your bag, than you’ll find the eponymous Lu Flux label to be bursting at the seams, offering quintessentially British eccentricity neatly compacted into delectable wearable delights.

Having been introduced to Flux's work through her SS10 collection; the cleverly titled Eco Life of Riley really caught my attention and imagination: featuring costume bluetit suits, eclectic patchwork detailing, jarring graphics and hand-crafted raffia goods made in conjunction with SOKO Kenya (as mentioned in my Lalesso GOTW post on Friday).

Revered for her trademark wide shapes, it was business as usual when I saw Flux and her beautiful AW11 collection, Sea and be Seen at Estethica, where she has exhibited twice previously. Inspired by the eternal, alluring mysteries of the deep blue sea, silhouettes are loose and lean, accentuated by opulent velvets in rich burgundy and aqua marine shades, purposefully designed to sit awkwardly on the body with adroit manipulation of fabric resembling giant clams and anemones – subtly bringing the murky sea to life.

Working in collaboration with artist and illustrator Dan Arnold, Flux has utilised intriguing drawings of ‘mind-boggling deep-sea beasts amid the inky waves’, which are digitally printed onto jersey, and blown up-from their microscopic habitats to be quilted onto heritage Harris Tweed and of course the sumptuous velvet, which features oh-so heavily. A thoroughly regal affair that screams “high quality”, this season Flux’s knitwear is sponsored by Jamieson + Smith of the Shetland Islands who create beautiful yarns from the wool of purebred Shetland Sheep.

Key garments include the ‘Kelp Cardigan’ in grey with oversized white polka dots reminiscent of ethereal clouds and the ‘Fin Dress’; an oversized shirt with ruffle detailing, repeated in differing variations throughout the collection. I particularly loved the shoes with their oversized buckle details and patchwork colours reminding me of swashbucklers! Partnering with Green Shoes - the ethical, hand-made shoe company based in Devon - for the third time Flux’s footwear scores a hat-trick utilising the velvet from the collection to add corresponding finishes to shoes, bags and belts.

Sea And Be Seen: Lu Flux Autumn/Winter Collection 2011 from Neil O'Driscoll on Vimeo.

To put a finer point on the beauty and detail of this collection, Flux has done fashion journalists and bloggers a great favour by teaming up with her long-term collaborative partner Neil O’Driscoll, to create a short film which brings to life the aquatic motifs of the collection in a velvet-draped den of iniquity.

Garment Of The Week: Lalesso

A label I first discovered several years ago while researching emerging brands of African origin, Lalesso is a firm favourite, getting additional brownie points for being ethically sound – something that is getting increasingly important to me as I get older. Having recently won the coveted Ethical Fashion Forum award for Innovation, Lalesso’s SS11 collection beautifully reflects the brand’s signature love of East African print. Offering a plethora of stylish summer dresses in a variety of figure-enhancing cuts, bright colours and light fabrics, Lalesso’s designs are both eye-catching and practical in equal measures.

In 2009 Lalesso’s lovely founders - Olivia Kennaway and Alice Heusser - transferred their in-house workshop to the HQ of another of their Kenyan inspired ideas, SOKO. After realising the potential that an ethical factory could offer - namely an increased number of jobs in the local town of Ukunda, and increased export of quality garments - the entrepreneurial pair leapt at the chance to create their own independent, charity-based, eco and ethical clothing production unit.

With Lalesso - among many other international designers and brands, including another favourite of mine, Lu Flux - using SOKO exclusively for garment production, the future for Kenyan workers in Ukunda is looking bright. Located in the grounds of Ukunda Polytechnic, this pioneering initiative seeks to place the community at the heart of production. By encouraging local hotels and businesses to donate materials, SOKO ensures students are given the means to improve their practical skills while providing the possibility of further training and employment for graduates.

Certified as a Carbon Zero company, Lalesso hone and utilise the creative talent of SOKO-based Kenyan artisans in many aspects of the design process to create: bead detailing, bracelets on the swing tags, delightful hand-carved coconut buttons and Masai beading. Rather excitingly SS11 sees a new collaboration, incorporating the beautiful brass works of the Bombolulu Workshop into garments – a project organised by the Association of the physically disabled of Kenya.

As you can tell from the 400 odd words above, there is a lot to love about Lalesso, so when it came to choosing a singular garment for GOTW I was quite surprised that only one really stood out in my mind; the Matatu halter-neck dress, which just screams out to be taken on holiday. In a beautiful sea blue with a striking yellow and red repeat print, my guess is that this dress will be beautiful for highlighting a tan and sun-kissed tresses, making it the jewel in Lalesso’s SS11 head wrap.

The Matatu dress and the entire SS11 collection is available worldwide from 1st April 2011.