Set designer Gary Card created the backdrop for Roksanda Ilincic's spring/summer'16 show today and it was the perfect precursor to the soft/hard fashion mix about to come: the towering geometric structures were made out of MDF but glowed a sunset pink that almost looked velvet to the touch.
The elegant Roksanda employed a romantic palette of canary yellow, sherbet orange, baby blue and faded pink in addition to flowing silks, ballooning sleeves, ruffled necklines and exquisitely layered and frayed chiffons that fluttered with the languorous motion of an underwear creature - but every one of these ultra-feminine signposts was carefully shot through with something tougher: a black waistband, inside-out raw-edged visible seams, graphic lines printed over princess colours, smudged blue eyeshadow... Some looks were literally split in two - with one half of a dress representing the harder edge in a structured black weave, the other left free to billow away in lightweight pastel silk. Perfect for the sartorial Gemini that many of us would like to unleash more frequently.
Shapes were looser, freer and blown up, so a blush jumpsuit almost looked like a giant pair of high waisted trousers worn extra long and extra wide. A sweeping maxi skirt was cut short to show off the Tabitha Simmons lace-up booties with block heels, and then layered with a purposefully synthetic semi-opaque mesh which was organically barcoded with black bands. An intricately woven fabric sprouted edges of ribbon tassels like warped and alive TV static, so the exaggerated arms and couture gown-like proportions were once again kept in coolly casual check. This was the pefect lesson in combining restraint and romanticism to divine effect - and if those all super sleeve silhouettes don't become a very signficant must have next season we will eat our hats.
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