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'Akimbo', a new womenswear label by designers Joanna Shelley and Catherine Hickman, showed one of the best collections of the week. Their feminine clothes feature hand-dyed silk shirts printed with abstract geometric shapes in creams and browns and some are finished with soft leather panels. Trousers are emphasised with tailored darts and pleats.
Simon Howard showed a confident collection with angular and structured shapes formed in zip fronted jackets and flared trousers in stiff canvas materials.
Fashions for the 'forward thinking woman' presented by May Kew-Winder is largely masculine influenced but contains interesting details with pleats secured with dripped PVC.
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Some of the best streetwear was shown by Portobello Market retailer, Nicki Pumpkin. Her unisex clothes are well finished with quilted hooded tops and Japanese print dark denim.
Cassandra Postema's collection features recycled one-off pieces using vintage printed Oriental style dresses, with slash shoulders and uneven hems. Other tops and dresses are decorated with beads and fake stones.
Matthew Thomas' menswear collection focuses on casually tailored pastel linen suits, square cut with chunky fastenings. Cotton shirts are detailed with bold block prints and V-cut bottoms. The pouch pockets however, were a little naff.
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Abigail Smith (a designer who is now based in New York at the Fashion Institute of Technology) ended the week with 'Futuristic Spirituality', a polished collection with her trademark focus on treated fabrics giving the appearance of tissue paper. The delicate designs were shown sculpted around the body, with the white and off-white colours highlighted by prints fusing images of architecture and organics.
For the finalé, it was over to AFW veterans, Rubbercare. The catwalk was awash with models in revealing designs climaxing in an homo-erotic S & M wedding performed on stage, illustrating that Alternative Fashion Week is not just alternative by name.
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