Sarah Burton's show for Alexander McQueen closed the day in Paris yesterday. The designer was inspired by the Spitalfields weavers of the late 17th century, Huguenot migrants who arrived in London as religious refugees, she stated. 'They came with their weaving, their incredible talent and their love of flowers,' she added backstage.
It's a clever reference from a house that prides itself in upholding the values of hand craftsmanship and in drawing on British history. As for the clothes, they were more soft and unashamedly romantic than any this storied catwalk has seen to date.
With fresh faces and undone hair, models walked on raw floorboards in pale washed leathers and jacquards with gently frayed edges, the most exquisitely conceived ruffled chiffon and fine lace, almost all of it densely embroidered, printed, hand-painted and jewelled with everything from fragile blossom to more bright and bold blooms.
For all the elaboration there was a fluidity and ease at play here that seemed very personal to this designer. 'I wanted the girls to feel completely released, touchable and very feminine,' she said.