J.W.ANDERSON AW11 Collection at London Fashion Week

I do like a man in a skirt, but only if it’s a kilt,

here the black full length pleated skirts had a monastic feel to them, although Andersen was thinking more of the lines of attempts to dress beyond the old boundaries of gender in his collection titled ‘the Fear of Naturalism’.

But thankfully the skirts were only a small part of the collection and trousers were the order of the day. These came in the ordinary plain blacks and navy, whilst white rubber pants

and colourful paisley patterned silk pants created interest.

Paisley also showed in matching silk shirts, the padded sleeves of jackets and hoods.

Contrasting textures were used for coats and jackets, with fur covering the top half of backs and the bottom as a half pleated skirt.

Sleeves were quilted and fronts were felted and belted.

Knitwear was snugly fitted with mohair on raglan sleeves and backs again giving a furry texture.

And we cannot forget the boots with their little bit of fur covering the toe caps.

J W Anderson Spring/Summer 2011 collection at London Fashion Week

Titled ‘the Devoured and I’, the collection looks at the intimacy and journey of 2 people as they experiment and get lost in self discovery and subsequently the fall out and consequences of this.

Layering is key with waistcoats, shirts over tees, and knits wrapped round the waist, but the silhouette is slim and not baggy. Colours range from the muted earthy tones to....

burnt oranges,

blues,

pinks...

...and black.

Grandmas may have to lock up their doilies as hand crocheted ones make an appearance here giving texture to tee shirts and knits. Admittedly not all are the basic white as some are dip dyed with neon colours to represent hallucinations. Also adding texture and a bit of bling are Swarovski crystals embellishing tops and boots.

Patterns galore on rolled up chinos and digital prints of William Gedney the photographer grace the backs of tops.
The show ended this journey with a Pulp soundtrack and a wide laser beam display above the catwalk resembling a dense clouded sky.