Fashion, Fashion designers, Slideshow, Woman

Burberry Prorsum, Spring – Summer 2016 Ready to wear

September 22, 2015

London Fashion Week…

ON the face of it, it was the usual fanfare at the Burberry Prorsum show in Hyde Park: there were stressed ushers in day-glo jackets directing traffic with military precision, headset-wearing security at every check point, and suited staff guiding show goers to velvet upholstered seats.

Even, the same familiar front row: Burberry girls, Kate Moss, Cara Delevingne, Suki Waterhouse, and Jourdan Dunn, in addition to Sienna Miller, Paloma Faith, and Benedict Cumberbatch. But this season was quite unlike any other, because to see Burberry’s spring/summer 2016 show, you didn’t actually need an invitation.

You just needed Snapchat. The collection, pretty much in its entirety, was unveiled on the app as of 7pm last night. Trust Burberry to come up with a first. And another: Sephora streamed the first ever live runway beauty tutorial on YouTube. No one can say Burberry is behind on the digital up.

Nor an emerging artist. Previous entertainment has included Jake Bugg, James Bay and Tom Odell, but today saw a volte-face on that front with 54-year old singer-songwriter Alison Moyet performing live, accompanied by a 32-piece orchestra. She belted out familiar hits, All Cried Out, Only You, and Whispering Your Name and given the way Christopher Bailey boyishly ran out to hug her at the end, the chief creative and chief executive officer is clearly a fan.

But first things first: that nylon floppy backpack. Remember the wait-list frenzy that ensued over those personalised blanket ponchos a couple of seasons ago? Watch it happen again over these gabardine-constructed nylon backpacks. Embroidered with model’s initials with tan leather buckles they debuted in versions of black and khaki, and served to neatly sum up the younger, carefree spirit of this collection, titled FUNCTIONREGALIA, which was one of Bailey’s most on-the-pulse outings in recent seasons.

This is what modern urbanites will want to wear come spring: one of those slippery oyster silk slip dresses, suspended by spaghetti straps that skimmed the floor, with a languid trench coat nonchalantly thrown over. That look will take her almost anywhere, anytime – and even into autumn with the addition of a sweater. There was big emphasis on coats – yes – even for summer – after all, it’s always winter somewhere in the world; here you’ll find lace trenches spliced with sporty mesh, the perfect black pea coat, duffle coat, officer jacket with frogging and regimental buttons, and leather biker, finished with gold cording trim.