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Photo: Getty Images.
As the most anticipated designer to show during London Fashion Week, Jonathan Anderson’s J.W. Anderson collections are constantly evolving, drawing inspiration from eclectic references and are, therefore, not just full of surprises, but full of items women cannot wait to get their hands on.
The designer's fall 2017 offering, which he described to WWD as a “style odyssey,” featured a wealth of different ideas, silhouettes, fabrications, and styles. “You have this idea of something that is über feminine, but at the same time it can crash, and then it kind of builds itself up again," he told the magazine. "It’s this idea of stripping it right back to an outline silhouette — something very reduced — and then you start to build it up again.”
Dresses played a significant part in the collection, ranging from monochromatic to metallic. The show opened with a voluminous black keyhole number with a drawstring waist and oversized pockets on the chest; what followed were dresses rendered in silver chain mail, diaphanous silks, and red prints embellished with plumes of gray ostrich feathers.
Here, texture was key: Fur and leather pervaded, from the micro leather cropped jackets in brown and black that barely covered the shoulders — a sort of modern shrug that's very street style — to fuzzy outer coats worn with wide-legged pants and sneakers. Every material was rich and sumptuous, while still maintaining an element of sport and wearability. And though, at times, the mishmash of looks felt slightly discordant (and items like a half-jersey, half-shimmery oversized tee and going out tops that resembled Kendall Jenner's 21st birthday get-up felt a bit unnecessary), overall, it's easy to see these pieces catching on as quickly as ones from his previous collections have. (We can see Anderson’s ever-loyal international fan base in the asymmetrical funnel-neck tops, reimagined trench coat, shearling jacket, and balloon skirts already).
The real triumph of the offering though, was (unsurprisingly) the accessories. As the industry's current king of making bags go viral (see: the ubiquitous J.W.Anderson Pierce and the Loewe elephant purse), Anderson understands not just construction and appeal, but selling power. And the fringed and ribboned clutches sent down the runway Saturday are sure to be next season’s standouts. If you need convincing, click ahead.
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