London Fall 2014: Tom Ford, Peter Pilotto, Giles

by The Daily Front Row

(NEW YORK) Tom Ford 
Fall chez Ford is spiked with strong lines, deep hues, and that tough-to-attain amalgam of dark edge and imminent wearability. Dark shades of velvet kicked off the showing, paired with equally plush boots, with looks tinged with leather trim and laced-up bodices. The pencil skirt is  Furs abounded, unsurprisingly so; what’s a Ford collection without a heady dose of luxe? Animal prints made a cameo, on bomber jackets, boots, and sharply-cut coats. A duo of sequined minidresses riffing on Jay Z‘s song about the designer were kind of questionable, but the return to velvet (this time, in lipstick red, interspersed with more noir) righted things out by show’s end. With the exception of those loud, spangled frocks, it’s a collection that’s built pretty, well, Ford tough. 

Peter Pilotto
How does a buzzy label follow up the rush of a well-received, pattern-splashed Target collab? With a fresh slew of patterns, of course, textures aplenty, fur trimming, snowy photo prints, and bold black trims that framed each looks. Color combos were unexpected at times, sure, but delightfully so. Take that opening number, for instance: plum fur trum outlined a hefty cranberry knit, wrought with thick teal and grey embellishments. Fairly covered up, save for mid-thigh grazing slits and a couple of cutouts, the looks were truly exercises in ‘more is more,’ and in Pilotto and co-designer Christopher De Vos‘ case, that’s a good thing. Besides just melding patterns, the design duo achieved a dynamic look thanks to angular swaths of prints crashing into one another. It’s not a collection for shrinking violet types, but that’s not why one gravitates to Pilotto’s creations, now, is it? 

Giles 
Tunics splashed with vibrant audubon motifs and heavily-worked leather looks galore ruled in Giles Deacon‘s latest. It’s not the dark-edged gowns one typically comes to Deacon for; instead, there are skinny trou, with zippers flared at the calves and tough moto-y details everywhere. It wasn’t a collection devoid completely of dresses, though, and the frocks that were trotted out stayed true to the moody, deliciously twisted ethos one expects from a Giles showing. A trail of threatening-looking insects crawling up one frock, magnified towards the neckline, delivered on the sorta-sinister look some of the designer’s fans are probably expecting. Tough, thick-soled boots grounded the entire array of looks, making this one lass you probably don’t want to mess with. 

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