London Fashion Week: Lace, that most feminine and fragile of fabrics, is making a huge comeback for next spring, to judge from London Fashion Week.
John Rocha set the tone of modern romance yesterday at his show in the Natural History Museum, with a collection in which laces of all kinds were applied in his familiar patchwork style, softening stricter tailoring.
A white sparkle linen jacket, for example, was embellished with silk ribbons and pearls, and a full skirt was weighted with lace appliqué.
Hand- and craftwork have always been Rocha's signature motifs, along with a rather edgy approach to modern femininity.
Frothy decor like swagging, pleating, gathering and tucking are all about Edwardian opulence, but Rocha's approach was modern.
Playing around with exaggerated shapes produced a tightly-waisted organza blouse with enormous sleeves and a massive bow, while a sober, skinny, grey pants suit and a simple black taffeta prom dress showed a sharper, more commercial hand at work.
Stub-toed shoes with curved heels from Tracey Neuls brought a purposeful stride to the show.
Always master of the theatrical touch, Jasper Conran festooned the cool surroundings of the Royal Academy with washing lines laden with white vintage lace.
Male models in sweeping black cassocks and soutanes - straight out of a Fellini movie - opened the show, setting its 1950s Italian mood.
A stiff black taffeta skirt and a tight, scooped sweater had a dolce vita spirit, with key accessories being black peasant scarves and hen-shaped baskets. Conran makes elegance look so easy, whether it is cigar pants worn with a perfect white shirt or a floor-length dress in polka-dot chiffon.
Swagged skirts that emphasised the derriere and curvy corset dresses outlined the hourglass shape. This collection was both sultry and sexy, but reined in with a firm hand. Bora Aksu's show was colourful and intricately detailed, with crochet and distorted corsetry. Best of all were the cobwebby knits with sexy décolleté slits or hung with handmade glass beads.