Tuesday 13 September 2011

Fashion Moves

Fashion Week moves to London (opens September 16th, 2011) the day after the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in NYC (closes September 15th 2011). Talk about the jet setting for fashion designers, buyers, the press & celebrities. With the tight schedule comes its own set of obstacles, as it usually does. But, this year London Fashion Week is making a statement in a big way.

The buzz of London is the creativity and from a fashion insider's point of view, the energy of London is what makes it so unique.

London has recently been named "world's top fashion capital of 2011" by Global Fashion Monitor which tracks mentions on the internet causing fashion followers near and far to pay attention to the year’s Fashion Week. Talk about the Alexander McQueen exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art in New York and the Duchess of Cambridge's wardrobe has launched London to the top of the fashion ratings.

Amongst these positive highlights is the notable arrival of Tom Ford to the London schedule for the first time this season. London is certainly paving the way and making itself known as a leading capital for fashion.

In addition to the new developments already implemented this season, the British Fashion Council has revealed that it is talking to many big designers about returning to London next year while the spotlight is on the Olympics. One project worth noting is The Women’s Tennis Association and the British Fashion Council collaboration. They’ve unveiled a unique partnership celebrating the connection between the stars of women’s tennis and the world of fashion.

The aim here is to feature British designers and further extend the link between the sport and fashion. A select group of WTA stars will be dressed in customized dresses, created specifically for them by such British designers as Stella McCartney, Burberry, Vivienne Westwood, Giles Deacon, Matthew Williamson, Richard Nicoll, Hussein Chalayan, and David Koma, among others.

Caroline Rush, CEO of the British Fashion Council, commented: “This project is an ideal opportunity to build relationships between our British designers and some of today’s most iconic female athletes. The link between fashion and sport is increasingly important and never more so than at the most famous of the tennis tournaments, Wimbledon.”

If a designer like Stella McCartney were to choose LFW (London Fashion Week) for the preview of her main collection, this would be an enormous change for fashion presence in London. McCartney shows her Adidas line in London but her main collections show in Paris.

London has much to be excited about and this year’s fashion week is definitely raising the bar.

London Fashion Week
September 16th to 21st 2011
Visit: www.LondonFashionWeek.com