Crown and Glory at London Fashion Week!

I can't believe it's taken me so long to write this post! September was a rollercoaster month here at Crown and Glory with events, wholesale orders by the dozen and another record month of on site sales.

One of the most exciting parts (one of the least was a HMRC tax workshop, snorrrre!) was a pretty spontaneous trip to London to see my pieces being walked in the House of Evolution SS13 show. Showcasing it's third season, House of Evolution is a creative platform that showcases a range of contemporary, edgy and innovative designers, carefully selected by industry insiders. Each season exposes 3 collections, offering an international platform for up and coming new designers and broadcasting the collections to an audience of over 320 million via the channel fashiontv. Mind officially blown!


Kavita from SheWearsFashion at House of Evolution, SS13
A bag of nerves, I met up with the only fashion buddy I could've shared this awesome moment with - Kavita from shewearsfashion. Not only has Kavita been a huge supporter of Crown and Glory from the very start, she also has her own fashion based business so totally 'gets' what a big deal this was. Plus she's lovely to boot!


Kavita from SheWearsFashion and I, waiting for the show to start
After hanging around like absolute novices we were far too busy and fabulous for our front row call (you don't have to queue in a fashion scrum if you're 'frowing', who knew?!) and briefly chatting to Aisling, Elodie and Michelle, we were seated! Being front row at such a major fashion event took me back to my daydreams in GCSE textiles classes, "one day I'll work in fashion!"


front row at House of Evolution SS13
And so onto the show. The first designer, mother-daughter team DB Berdan showcased a Belle Epoque influenced collection - chock full of French lace, jewels, fairytale prints and a rainbow of pastel tints. The makeup was particularly note-woorthy - the Body Shop team piled pastel sequins high on the models hairlines and dotted shiny discs under their eyes.



DB Berdan at House of Evolution
Unfortunately I was a bag of nerves during the second designer, Lug Von Siga, and my rapidly depleting iPhone battery meant I didn't manage to capture many shots. However, the collection was heavily influence by her Turkish heritage, drawing inspiration from the mysterious passages of the Grand Bazar for her minimalist yet luxurious collection of separates.



Lug Von Siga at House of Evolution SS13
And then just like that, it was show time! As the light came up for Danilo Gabrielli I just about died with excitement.


Danilo Gabrielli at House of Evolution, SS13
When my contact was describing the collection to me (modern Marie Antoinette) I wasn't sure what to expect - but the collection boasted 20's and 30s Hollywood, Italian tailoring and classic American luxury as it's inspiration. The hair, designed by Toni and Guy, was piled in dreamy updos and finished with the dainty rose bobby pins in cream, lavender and pale pink that I designed to fit the brief.




Danilo Gabrielli at House of Evolution, SS13
The real star of the show was New York based model, Ashley Vasicek, who I believe was flown over especially for the show. Such beautiufl hair, those cheekbones! You can see why Gabrieli was desperate to have her walk in this show - that final cocktail dress looks like it was made for her.


Ashley Vasicek at Danilo Gabrielli, House of Evolution SS13
As the lights dimmed, Kavita and I were quickly whipped backstage to grab some close up shots of the models before they rushed off. It was touching that some of the girls wanted to keep the bobby pins, they loved them so much!


backstage at House of Evolution, SS13
It was quite the honour to be involved in such a huge production, and to grab a little taste of London Fashion Week for the first time - it's only made me hungrier for more!

You can purchase the very bobby pin sets, I decided to call them Marie, that were walked in this collection here.