The fourth season of London Collections Men drew to a close earlier this week. The three day event was hosted in three central London locations, allowing easy passage for attendees between shows – a novelty if you’ve tried to dart across London on the Circle line between shows at Fashion Week.
David Gandy, Tinie Tempah, Nick Grimshaw and Dermot O’Leary were regular attendees at the shows as well as hordes of buyers, stylists, editors and bloggers kitted out in their finest sartorial arsenal for the extravaganza.
LCM hosts an incredible mix of designers, from the Savile Rowe descendants, to the rebellious streetwear labels, the international big shots such as McQueen and Burberry to the lesser known labels for the every-man in the know. With a slight clash with Florence based trade event Pitti Uomo, there were concerns that attendance may dwindle on the final day of LCM, but venues packed and parties were flying.
Here’s how I got on at my first bout of menswear shows.
TOPMAN DESIGN
For many LCM attendees the TOPMAN Design show was the first of the season, and would be the most memorable of the three days too. Glossy puddles spilt onto the concrete catwalk, drops of water pitter-pattered from the ceiling, and in a dramatic finale a downpour of rain was released on an army of models.
The TOPMAN Design collection drew inspiration from fishermen, tempestuous skies and Northern shipyards. The show opened with the reciting of a bespoke poem by John Cooper Clarke, which set a sombre mood. Chunky fisherman knits with roomy roll neck collars were paired with slouchy trousers and oversized outerwear. The palette was grey, navy, slate blues and black for the most part, with the occasional injection of tomato red that offset the melancholy mood. In contrast to these billowing shapes, were straight double breasted jackets, slinky PVC trousers and tight red plaid shirts wrapped in clear plastic. Plastic was the fabric of choice with water resistant outerwear, latex capes, gaffer tape detailing and PVC featuring heavily. A cropped peacoat was a standout piece.
ORLEBAR BROWN
From wet weather at TOPMAN Design, we were transported to the heat of the jungle at the Orlebar Brown presentation. If you are a brand principally known for producing high quality swimwear it can’t be easy to put on a collection for the cooler months. Armed with fresh coconuts, attendees were taken around a tropical setting of palm trees, a backdrop of flamingos, and more latterly the urban jungle of New York city.
The resident graphic designer Tommy Penton had created a capsule collection of board shorts with the New York, Paris and London skylines on them, whilst other shorts and t-shirts featured the work of Greek artist Konstantin Kakanis who designed prints of birds of paradise for the garments. The gilet in pops of yellow and red stood out amongst a navy, camel and khaki palette of chinos, jackets, shorts and the classic white t-shirt.
Aviator and wayfarer sunglasses completed the looks, as did rubber deck shoes that had been created in partnership with footwear favourite Sperry.
MAN
The MAN show always promises a feast for the eyes. A collaboration between TOPMAN and Fashion East, this year the show hosted three designers – Alan Taylor, Bobby Abley and Craig Green.
First up was Alan Taylor whose AW14 included bloated suits, high waisted skirts and a dramatic take on traditional tailoring. Bursts of fluorescent colour and metallics on gloves, boots and bags, stood out amongst an otherwise muted palette of black, blue, greys, browns and grape. Traditional tweeds were juxtaposed with lightweight fabrics on slouchy trousers, oversized coats and billowing suits. Referencing Talking Heads and Henri Matisse as his inspirations, clean lines were interrupted with swirling patterns on sumptuous fabrics.
Bobby Abley is the king of the fantastical, and his AW14 collection referenced a dark and nightmarish side to Disney inspired tales. The designer’s signature teddy bear was suspended from models’ hands, whose mouths were pulled back into vicious ‘O’ shapes by silver ringed grills. Mickey Mouse ears on backwards baseball caps, and ghoulish horned caps were the headgear of choice whilst chunky Dr Marten boots provided suitable footwear for stomping. Oversized wool jackets, neoprene coats, bubble-gum pink mohair shorts and jumpers, and tunics hosted slogans such as ‘ABLEY EVER AFTER’. This was a sportswear collection of fun and aesthetically pleasing fashion, with far darker undertones.
Last year, Craig Green caused controversy with his plank headpieces, so I was expecting big sculpted pieces to be coming down the runway when the opening power ballad started to play, however Green’s final outing at MAN was much more accessible than his previous collections. The mood was the ceremony and romanticism of the East married with functionalism and utilitarianism. The colours and the prints were breathtaking, in a rejection of digital-printing all patterns had been hand-painted, and were inspired by Persian rugs. Weighty layers of gowns, floor length coats, tunics and skirts gave the collection a ceremonial feel which was offset with functional harnesses and more tailored pieces.
FASHION EAST
Although Roxanne Farahmand had a car full of menacing models in leather and lycra flashing their heavy knuckledusters and Nike footwear, it was the neighbouring presentation by Nicomede Talavera that stole the show at the Fashion East installations. Graduated little under a year ago, Talavera showcased a collection of eighties inspired sportswear updated with a flared trouser leg and high necklines. Roll necks and ribbed layered knitwear were worn with knee length aprons. Unshaved leather, Italian wools, denim, lycra, shearling and patent pig skin were the fabrics of choice giving the collection exciting texture.
XANDER ZHOU
It was nice to have an injection of the international at LCM, and Beijing-based Xander Zhou offered something different to the predominantly British designer schedule. The show had a distinctly Eastern vibe to it, fusing ceremonial sashes and scarves with tailored garments. An oversized, wide-lapelled red coat stole the show, although it was competing with outerwear dotted with tufts of fluff in varying colours, not too dissimilar to the furry slippers worn by the models. Silky pyjama trousers, singular thick diagonal lines slashed across coats, roll necks and high collared shirts and military medal styled badges featured throughout. Some models gripped rolls of parchment which gave them the look of the Graduate, others bore headpieces that at times resembled crowns when paired with Zhou’s gowns, but equally transformed the models into hospital patients when fashioned with pyjama style trousers. Music was ethereal and the mood was one of grandeur, sophistication and celebration. Zhou’s show was a world away from the gritty world of the up and coming design talent showcased at Fashion East.
CP COMPANY
The CP COMPANY presentation took place in the Vinyl Factory in Soho, and was the only presentation of the day which didn’t feature a tribe of young models. Instead the installation curated a collection of highly functional and utilitarian jackets made from English Royal Navy and Anglo-Saxon country waterproof cottons. CP COMPANY beautifully married function with form, as tailoring quality, aesthetic richness and fine tailoring were combined for a small collection of outerwear pieces. Shetland wool was presented in a traditional Scottish check and new to the collection was Japanese polyester microfibre to replace cotton, showing how the brand continues to push the boundaries when it comes to technical fashion. The devil is in the detail with these pieces, performance fabrics, lightly quilted details, subtle logos and multiple zips all give the garments a premium look and feel.
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