“The collection echoes the architectural buildings from my home country, Georgia.” Lako Bukia told me backstage shortly after her debut London Fashion Week show had ended. “I miss it so much when I am here in the UK and so I wanted to bring a taste of Georgia to London.” Combining sharp, structured, tailored shapes such as accentuated shoulders on jackets and tops with gentle draping in light flowing silks, Lako has created a perfect summer collection: “One of my aims was to make people over here in the UK to realise that although my country has had problems and have been faced with war, it is actually extremely beautiful, and so I wanted to make the collection’s colours and shapes as beautiful as possible.” A strong palette of deep reds and soft blue and pink hues were splashed onto tapered peg-leg trousers, full-length swooping skirts and pale sheer silk tops.
In our brief conversation earlier today, Lako expressed her thoughts on her London Fashion Week debut: “I am really happy with the reception the show received today,” she said. “I was surprisingly calm before and after, but I think that’s because the whole team at Vauxhall Fashion Scout is so supportive - they genuinely care about their designers.”
So what’s next for the Lako Bukia label? “I will also be presenting my SS 11 collection with Vauxhall Fashion Scout in the Paris show room this season, which I am really excited about! I also hope to show with Vauxhall Fashion Scout again for the AW 11 showcase.” So readers watch this space… this is certainly not the last you will hear of Lako Bukia!
Illustrations: KELLYANNA
Words: Sarah Barlow
Photography: Alex Fynn O'Neil