Fashion month has been a star-studded celebration of the world’s most talented designers. With a disrupted London Fashion Week schedule and the return of the supermodel set, this SS23 season has been a memorable one.
From body-positive designs to Y2K french fusion dressing, these designers have the modern market in mind, changing the way we dress and shop. With the new year looming and party season around the corner, here are the five brands who deserve to be on your radar and in your wardrobe.
Karoline Vitto
Designer Karoline Vitto held her debut show this London Fashion Week under the guidance of Fashion East, the non-profit program which counts Fendi’s Artistic Director Kim Jones as an alumnus. A graduate of Central Saint Martins and The Royal College of Art, Vitto opened her studio in 2020 dedicating her work to “accentuating the curves and celebrating the folds of the female body”. This isn’t a mere marketing strategy for Vitto, her dedication to making a change has her offering custom sizes for orders placed on her website, in addition to every piece being made-to-order in her London studio.
Her SS23 collection continued to play with sensual idealisations, flirting on the boundary of exposure and concealment and challenging previous beliefs about how a curvier female body should be presented. The result: bold and beautiful pieces that flatter every shape and size, perfect for celebrating the new year and your body in.
Luchen
Founded in 2021 by Parsons trained designer Lu Chen, Luchen creates structural pieces that take inspiration from the notion of time and the instability caused by it. Slip dresses, vests, silky trousers, and sheer shirts all forge a collection that works to fight the border between fragility and robustness. Lighter materials like feathers juxtapose stronger utilitarian fabrics such as leather. “Growth, atrophy, stasis, pulsation” are words the website uses to describe the brand and are indicative of the way Chen works with the body to create theatrical garments made for big moments.
Andreadamo
After working for powerhouses Roberto Cavalli and Dolce & Gabbana, Andrea Adamo decided he wanted creative freedom during the 2020 lockdown. His brand Andreadamo, takes a bold approach in presenting collections for a certain woman, “the Andreadamo woman who is simply herself” but who simultaneously embodies the brands codes, “courage strength and pride”.
His SS23 collection showcased pieces of fabric faintly attached to one another in a way that intimately previews the body beneath. Models walked on water while their outfits reflected the elements fluidity and transparency, becoming like a second skin. As a favourite of style icon and pop sensation Dua Lipa, it’s clear Adamo and his designs are not one to be missed.
Vaillant Studio
French dressing is synonymous with simplicity and elegance, while often retaining a healthy dose of sex appeal. Parisian born designer Alice Vaillant fuses Y2k style with the French notions of design we all love. Worn by Kylie Jenner, Devon Lee Carlson, and Matilda Djerf you wouldn’t be premature in labelling Vaillant Studio as the next it-girl brand. Sustainability is key for the growing company and 70% of their collections are made with deadstock fabric.
Her SS23 show worked on the dualities and dichotomies of design: strong, sensitive, subtle, and sexy. The brands asymmetric yet graceful silhouettes are rooted in what Alice describes as a “mixture of vulnerability, poetry and sensuality”.
Feben
Central Saint Martin’s graduate Feben showcased her work with the help of Newgen this London Fashion Week, presenting a SS23 collection full of bold colours and texture. Born in North Korea and raised in Sweden by an Ethiopian mother, Febens work “reclaims feelings of displacement” and pushes styles that invoke a new or previously uncategorised way of dressing.
Feben designs for a woman lost in her own complexities, struggling to fit in anywhere so instead taking decisive action to fit in nowhere. She challenges tradition choosing instead to channel strength through the unknown. Her work is a lesson in identity dressing, however complex that may be.
