What: Alice Lee
When: Saturday 18th February, 2012
Where: Vauxhall Fashion Scout, Freemasons Hall
London Fashion Week may be over, but I still have one last show review for you all. And my reasoning behind waiting until after all the catwalks have been dismantled? Well, it is because, for me, the Alice Lee show deserved my ‘Best Womenswear Award’ (OK, I know right now that doesn’t mean diddley squat, but watch this space).
The collection itself is cited as being heavily influenced by dark romanticism. It was held in the upper room of Freemasons Hall – a devastatingly gothic and gorgeously seductive space that only added to the show’s drama. With Alice Lee being known for their sculptural knitwear, a bevy of models sauntered down the runway in an array of skin-tight dresses and leggings, whilst some covered up in oversized structured coats. Detailing throughout the collection came in the form of plaited and woven leather that accentuated the models’ curves. No frills, no-nonsense, as they say.
Easily one of, if not the most polished show I have witnessed this season, for me the collection screamed ‘modern day Miss Havisham.’ The modern day woman, jilted by love yet attempting to blindly carry on. This was confirmed by styling the models with exaggerated sweeping fringes over their eyes, making them tread carefully down the runway, with every chance of crashing in to each other (thankfully this didn’t happen, and no one was hurt during the making of this show). The grand finale saw the final model strut precariously down the runway with a bouquet-style mask covering the majority of her face. Although this did seem slightly odd at the time, after digesting the entire show, I do feel this helped tie up the overall themes the label was attempting to demonstrate.
Images credited to Samantha Meachin.
