LFW Diary AW11: Maria Grachvogel

Kicking off my third official LFW as a freelancer and blogger was the superbly talented Maria Grachvogel who lived up to all of my buoyant expectations. Set in the resplendent and newly refurbished Savoy Hotel's grand Lancaster Ballroom, Maria Grachvogel was so inspired by the venue for her AW11 showcase that she named both a tuxedo and flannel jacket after the decadent Edwardian Building.

Taking inspiration from a variety of sources the resulting aesthetic was a heady mixture of dark tribal prints evocative of fairy tales by the Brothers Grimm, with a purposefully engineered artwork to encompass each garment. Beautifully ethereal and abstract shapes infiltrated the catwalk including signature pieces such as 'the magic pants' and softly draped dresses, which any discerning woman would kill to have in her capsule wardrobe. With relaxed tailoring taking the spotlight, printed wool dresses were bountiful as were loose fitting silk shirts with flamboyant balloon sleeves.

With a somewhat muted colour palette of ebony, grey, cream and flesh, bright bursts of tangerine orange, and subtle jewel tones ensured the collection had the wow factor. Texture also played an important role, with rich fabrics such as silk, georgette, lace and cashmere making interesting surfaces for Grachvogel’s fluid petrol-looking prints.

Grachvogel's MAC make-up and hair by Kenna was some of the best I’ve seen so far on the catwalks, with strong dark blue/ purple lips and exquisite buns which incorporated samurai style horizontal spears, held in place with copious amounts of gel. In a special thank you on the press release, I noted that Grachvogel enlisted the services of a spiritual healer backstage by the name of Ingrid Collins. I don't know what she did, but it certainly worked a treat, as this was a fantastic show and a superb setting to launch my LFW.

AW10 Press Days: Part Nine

There seem to be way too many good press days this season - in comparison to last - but I'm guessing that this may just be because I didn't attend as many as I'd have liked back in November. Anyhow I've been going to so many that I'm failing to report back fast enough so get used to more photographs and less words, which may well be music to your ears.

At Bryan Morel PR I loved the colours and sophisticated cuts from Maria Grachvogel, and I have to say publicly that the lunch spread was wonderful:

Naturally, as you'd expect John Rocha's collection was a cracker! Close-up I loved the quality that shone through with all of the fabrics weighing a tonne.

I thoroughly enjoyed the chic silhouettes, digital prints, and of course Swarovski crystal numbers present in the Osman collection.

Mostly as a reminder to self, I've included this cute bear face bum bag from Mango... will be used in a shoot very soon!

At Iroquois PR I only took a couple of noteworthy snaps. First up was is one of favourite ethical designers - Lu Flux.

Another firm favourite, held in high regard by everyone (I'm taking into account that if a designer is BFC/ Newgen backed then they should be considered 'good stock' by the fashion pack) is Christopher Raeburn, whom as we all know by now uses re-appropriated military fabrics and parachute material.

Truly great brands were on display at the H PR press day - a land I had not had the pleasure of visiting before!

I love these playful garments designed by Elizabeth Lau, which will be going in my forthcoming clown shoot.

I loved this woven suede and leather laptop case.

One of my new favourite brands discovered at the press days is Paul and Joe Sister. I loved the cuts, the textures and also the prints.

Tba was another new brand, whose collection I was pleasantly suprised with.

Paul and Joe's collection was also lovely and the floral blazer in particular caught my attention.