Designers show their softer side at London Fashion Week

Yesterday’s fashion venues in London were as interesting and diverse as the designers’ spring and summer collections including Renzo Piano’s 17-storey skyscraper at London Bridge, a 1920s building in Bloomsbury and a former fish loading space at King’s Cross.

Trends emerging included the little white dress in various guises, wipe-clean fabrics, pastel shades and longer, often fuller, skirts.

Tailoring is softer and so are colours – even Burberry’s trenches were less buttoned- up. Think pink for spring.

Samantha Cameron was front row at the Roksanda Ilincic show, where yellow op art graphic prints and dayglo colours had an immediate, summery vibe. Flyaway panels on a pale grey dress emphasised the breezy look while black grid patterns layered over white net skirts continued the optical effect in a graceful way. The finale was a rich line-up of dresses with thick crusted crystal decorations. This was a lovely show.

Back in Regents Park at the verdant Topshop venue, Mario Schwab’s collection led with dip-dyed jersey dresses and gold bracelets that looked like bicycle clips while other dresses and shifts were stitched together with gold staples. The designer said the collection was about sensuality, but long ballerina dresses with black woven cane bodices were more femme than fatale.

The exquisitely beautiful bridal-style white lace gowns at Erdem, many decorated with feathers and floral embroidery made his collection in the Handyside Canopy a memorable one.

Even a biker jacket took on a new look in see-through lace while the music provided by young Chinese-Canadian pianist Annie Yim on cello underscored the collection’s feminine modern elegance.

It was all very different at Peter Pilotto where digital prints, multi-coloured orchid laces and intricately embroidered and embellished tweeds made for a kaleidoscopic mix of texture and colour. A recurring silhouette was a cropped crinoline topped with a multi layered jacket.

Last night it was announced that Pilotto is to collaborate with the US retail giant Target starting next February with 70 pieces.