FRONT ROW| Tony Glenville at Ones to Watch SS15

Tony Glenville, fashion journalist and Creative Director of the London College of Fashion, sat front row at Fashion Scout’s Ones To Watch show this morning. Ready to be surprised and impressed by the fresh talent on show, Glenville enjoys discovering designers not necessarily splashed all over mainstream fashion media.

What do you think of Fashion Scout as a platform for young designers and emerging talent?

I think it’s a great idea that away from the establishment there’s a real showcase for people who are starting their careers. People who perhaps have a different approach to fashion to the mainstream. Fashion Scout is the perfect showcase for them.

What other Fashion Scout shows are you seeing this season?

Almost everything, I think. It’s only day one and I’m sorting my schedule out, but I know I’m watching quite a lot. 

Is there somebody that you are most looking forward to?

No, because I’ve learnt that every season there’s a surprise. I’ve learnt after many years of shows that someone you loved last season may be not as strong the following season, so I’m completely open and I love the surprise.

Have you seen any key trends coming out of fashion month already?

I think I would quote Cathy Horyn from the New York Times and say that it’s all about the pieces; it’s all about reality and clothes. I think that there’s a definite change, and if you look at Galliano, Marc Jacobs, McQueen - all the lavish spectacle, we’re slightly over that at the moment. We want to see what the fashion business is really about.

So how do you feel about the ‘Normcore’ aesthetic of the past few seasons?

(Fakes yawn) I think it’s always been there, just at the moment it’s the newest thread to hang a story on and it’s a new name.

What do you take from fashion week?

From the shows, I get inspiration. I get the opportunity to see people not necessarily getting so much PR because they’re not in every supplement, they’re not on all the websites. Vogue and Style.com don’t necessarily cover them, so it’s a great opportunity to be in the room and see the stuff.

By Isabella Silvers, Contributor, (@izzymks).
Photo by Elizabeth Hodson.

COLLECTION| Ones To Watch SS15

Youjia Jin

Youjia Jin has become known for her mixture of sharp tailoring and pleated draping, which has earned her welcomed praise from top UK fashion publications, including Vogue and GQ. 

Her signature aesthetic has continued for SS15 with a showcase of white, grey and black.

Long, loose pieces were draped over cigarette pants, while styling was kept minimal.

White fabric bled into grey, akin to the dip-dyeing technique and all-black in billowing forms added an essence of brooding androgyny along with two toned brogues. Back collars on jackets and grey knitwear further cemented Jin vision for a strong, suave SS15 woman.

Min Wu

Min Wu has already developed a reputation for designing for exuberant women, with interlacing lines and fluid shapes forming Wu's technique in creating richly visual garments. 

With a penchant for garnering inspiration from technology and merging functional fabrics Wu's collection today intertwined the wearability of breathable sports material with PVC, offsetting the fabrics with sweet candy colours. 

Peach orange and blues were key colours for Wu this season, while ruffled detailing represented playfulness. Pinstripes and three-row headbands also added a linear element to her work. 

Cassandra Verity Green

This season Cassandra Verity Green collaborated on her SS15 collection with the knitting machinery company, Santoni Shanghai. Quite impressive for the young designer who only graduated from Central Saint Martins last year.

Green's outlandish designs are a direct embodiment of her ideals: that the wearer should have an experience with the clothes and that fashion therefore should not be taken too seriously.

This consensus was evident on today's catwalk with the theme of the aquatic. Sea waves were seen in detailing on legs and dresses accompanied by bold turquoise wigs. Swimwear pieces and use of transparent PVC, representing inevitable wetness, were an obvious nod to the theme, alongside leather trimmed round bags reminiscent of water bubbles.

Furthermore, the use of red and spiky detailing, which added depth to the Green's take on knitwear, were a clever take on the dangers and perils of sea creatures and unexplored territory.

Keiko Nishiyama

Ornate designs have become a staple of Keiko Nishiyama's work, with the 30-year old Tokyoite often drafting inspiration from delicate hand drawn prints.

This signature was evident in today's display which was reminiscent of fairy queens.

Highly intricate oriental floral and bird designs were the main feature in Nishiyama's collection, emblazoned throughout upon pleated capes, cigarette pants and long length dresses.

Models strode down the catwalk in shoes representing elfish footwear while headwear was also another focal point. Beautifully crafted bonnets were also displayed, although a closing headpiece decorated with shells, twigs and plaits was a marvellous construction. 

By Clarissa Waldron (@thisisclarissa)

Photos by Hugo Nogueira

FRONT ROW| Sara Maino at Ones to Watch

Italian Vogue’s Senior Editor Sara Maino works with some of the most talented designers in the world, but enjoys the interesting and challenging designs from younger talents from a wide range of backgrounds and traditions.

Fashion Scout: What do you think about Fashion Scout as a platform for young designers?

Sara Maino: When I am asked this question, I always answer in the same way; it’s very important that platforms like Fashion Scout exist to support new designers, as I do think that this is the beginning of the designers doing such fantastic work. It’s always very challenging and interesting to come and see so many different designers from different countries, traditions and mentalities.

FS: Do you think young designers get enough support?

SM: I do always think that we can do it much better, but I do think that, especially in London, they do really get a lot of support. It is interesting to see how it has changed in the past few years. I mean, in the beginning there were two or three important platforms through which talent was sustained, but now in the industry it’s kind of an interest to the new generation, so this is already a big success. I do think this must just go on, and we should be supportive in many ways.

FS: What shows are you seeing with Fashion Scout this season?

SM; I just saw Jamie Wei Huang before, which was really interesting. I also think the Ones To Watch are really challenging. I’m going to see the Portuguese designers this afternoon, and then unfortunately have to go home tomorrow so I won’t get a chance to see all of them! But it’s always nice to see the pictures afterwards.

FS: Have you been to the Exhibition?

SM: Yes I have, I do think that the graduate fashion designers, some of which I had already seen in London’s Graduate Fashion Week, I do think they’re very, very talented. A few are very interesting and ones to keep an eye on.

FS: It’s only a week into fashion month, but have you seen any key trends emerging?

SM: It’s a little too soon to say, but seeing what I saw here today, there’s a lot of colour, which is always positive, and it’s always interesting to see things going in the direction of easy wear, rather than fashion that is too complicated.

By Isabella Silvers, Contributor, (@izzymks).

Photo by Elizabeth Hodson.

BACKSTAGE| Ones To Watch SS15

Ahead of the distinguished Ones To Watch show, Fashion Scout headed backstage to know what hair and beauty looks would take priority for SS15. This year Ones to Watch were Cassandra Verity Green, Keiko Nihiyama, Min Wu and Youjia Jin. We got the chance to speak to some of the people who make this possible.

In order to encompass an aesthetic representative of all four collections being shown - the challenge for the teams of Tony & Guy and The Body Shop is to style the models in a way that fits all four designer’s collections. Siljie Vicent, the head of hair at Tony and Guy shares their concepts of hair styling. “The hair concept that will be shared by all four designers is a summery look," she said. "Soft textures, all the white from the face but with white hairlines. We use a lot of texture volume spray to give a loose pull back and its all knots in the back sitting nice and tight.”

Head of make-up with The Body Shop, Lan Nguyen Grealiss also gave us a sneak peek. “Looking at all the clothes, they were minimalist but in girly pink and pastel. At the same time we want to put a wide factor for hair and make up. To keep it girly we went to the earthy tone.” 

The teams used coral and orange colour to keep it reflective but muted. By adding the soft peach tone blush with clear gel to keep it minimalistic, Lan assured us that natural faces with neutral eyes are the make-up highlight. They used the Vitamin E spray from The Body Shop to keep the skin fresh.

“Every year is quite exciting and everyone is very different!” Ones to Watch stylist Rebekah Roy said. “Cassandra and her knitwear, Keiko with her beautiful collection inspired by Aquariums, Youjia is very elegant, throwing from white to grey and Min Wu is very fun and pastel. Each designer is very unique and special when the panel chose them. I think Fashion Scout is a great platform and a wonderful venue," she continued. "We have a lot of designers who stay with Fashion Scout who have their show for many years. It is such a great team to work in here!”

Bowen Lee @bowenleely

Images by Hugo 

DESIGNER SPOTLIGHT SS15| One to Watch Cassandra Verity Green

Capturing the eye of press like Dazed & Confused, i-D and MTV, knitwear designer Cassandra Verity Green takes inspiration from personal experience, emotion and memory. 

Named one of our Ones to Watch this season by an industry panel which included stylist Rebekah Roy, Hilary Alexander and Phoebe English, Green uses colour and cut to put together an aesthetic that's playfully innocent.

Known for the manner in which she included her goldfish within her bags, she's gained experience under the likes of Craig Lawrence and Leutton Postle before launching her own label. Graduating from Central Saint Martins in 2013, she has already won Grazia's Fashfactor competition in collaboration and gained sponsorship from Spinexpo and Santoni Shanghai. 

Presenting as part of our Ones to Watch showcase tomorrow at 13:30 alongside Keiko Nishiyama, Min Wu and Youjia Jin, Green's technical, hand-crafted pieces and meticulous work ethic are sure to be a definite progression from her debut 'Neptune's Daughter' collection. 

Be sure to check back to the blog throughout Fashion Week for exclusive Fashion Scout coverage, as well as follow our Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

Images, courtesy of Cassandra Verity Green. 

DESIGNER SPOTLIGHT SS15| One to Watch Youjia Jin

Youjia Jin creates the perfect juxtaposition between the masculine shape and the feminine form. Cleverly opting unisex pattern cutting within her womenswear collection, the balance she creates with her male tailoring skills and standout aesthetic all come together to make her one of our Ones to Watch.

Originally from China, Jin graduated from the MA womenswear course at the London College of Fashion last year and had previously studied at the Beijing Institute of Fashion and Technology. Now based in London and both a fashion designer and a buyer, she started her career by showcasing as part of her finalist at the LCF MA catwalk show at London Fashion Week last year.

Speaking of her AW14 collection, she took her inspiration from anatomy and surreal body art with a serene aesthetic. She admires the quality of human anatomy by analysing the body structure and combines the interplay conceived from traditional menswear tailoring to spark up her collections. Despite her minimal colour palette, Youjia Jin works her skill through symmetric design and pleating. Her designs are simplistic yet beautiful with clean-cut and moody colour palettes.

Youjia Jin has also achieved numerous high profile design accolades. She was awarded for the Top 10 menswear designer in China, presented her BA graduation collection at Beijing Fashion Week in 2009 and London Fashion Week last year. A designer who has well and truly caught the eye of the fashion world, we look forward to seeing her SS15 collection during our Ones to Watch show on Friday 12th September.

By Bowen Lee, Contributor, (@bowenleely).

Images, courtesy of Youjia Jin.

SS15 PREVIEW| One to Watch Keiko Nishiyama

Womenswear designer and London College of Fashion graduate, Keiko Nishiyama, creates highly ornate fashion and textile design which combine unexpected and philosophical elements of Europe and Tokyo. Favouring bold digital prints within her work, Nishiyama has been named a One to Watch by this season's Fashion Scout judging panel. We caught up with her ahead of her SS15 catwalk showcase to find out what we can expect to see this season.

Fashion Scout: What has inspired your SS15 collection?

Keiko Nishiyama: This season I have predominantly been inspired by Aquariums. I was also inspired by Wunderkammer, a collective culture also known as ‘Cabinets of Curiosities’. This interesting, if slightly quirky culture, looks to the idea of museums and rooms being filled with historical relics and antiquities with each room being produced by peoples different curiosities, I have combined these two themes for my SS15 collection. The model's aesthetic within this collection is mermaid-like and is inspired by the film ‘Night and Tide’ as directed by Curtis Harrington.

FS: Can you tell us about your design aesthetic?

KN: I am intrigued by beauty and fantasy. When I see women I look to their personal and individual charm rather than just seeing their immediate aesthetic beauty. When thinking about my design and print work, I strive for it not only to look aesthetically beautiful but also to have a somewhat bizarre element of intrigue to it. I like it when things look slightly mad! To me this is beauty. When I design, I always think about the combination of the detail and the fabrics that I use as I like them to clash in an almost unexpected manner in order to achieve my desired unconventional aesthetic.

FS: What fabrics and techniques have you used to help to create your vision in your SS15 collection?

KN: I am dedicated to the use of digital print, yet I have also opted for hand drawn print for SS15 as well. This season I have definitely favoured more delicate fabric choices and a deeper toned colour palette.

FS: How does it feel to be named a One to Watch?

KN: I am very pleased and excited to be named a One to Watch! It is an amazing opportunity and I will be showing my first collection since graduating from LCF in 2013 so I am very excited to be doing so as a One to Watch.

FS: What can we expect to see from your brand in the future?

KN: I feel that the strongest and most unique point of difference for my brand is my print design so I intend to continue to develop upon that in future collections. I am always keen to portray a feeling of madness and obsession through my print design. With this in mind, I am aware that the appeal of my work does depend of consumer and commercial taste, however, I do feel that my printed garments can also be added to more minimally styled outfits to provide an accent to each individuals own personal style. I am also designing a fashion accessories line, with garments such as tights which can be easily integrated into any look. As a woman myself I always consider and take into account how a garment can be worn and styled for everyday life.

FS: What are you excited about us seeing in your new SS15 collection?

KN: I am excited about you seeing the evolution from my first collection which looked at obsession through floral design. For this season, my fundamental concept is similar however I am going to convey another dimension of obsession. You will see the same direction within my print design but with a new, fresh and just as wacky twist to it for my SS15 collection.

By Charlotte Muscat, Contributor, (CharlotteLM9).
Images, courtesy of the designer.

SS15 PREVIEW| One to Watch Min Wu

Womenswear designer Min Wu has gone from strength to strength since graduating from the London College of Fashion in 2013. Wu’s collections have been met with much acclaim with her sculpted silhouettes and digitally printed gradients of colour making for a mesmerising signature style. 

With Min Wu being named a One to Watch by this season's Fashion Scout panel we caught up with her to find out the inspirations behind her latest SS15 collection and what we can expect to see from her when her pieces hit the catwalk in September.

Fashion Scout: What has inspired your SS15 collection?

Min Wu: For my SS15 collection I began by looking at the concept of human connection and how we as human beings perceive ourselves and our actions. I thought about the notion of the self. I find it interesting that, for example, if a person is driving a car and the car hits another person, it is a human response to say ‘I hit a person’ so with this as a starting point I explored how people describe themselves in relation to their actions. I was also inspired by our connection to the world through vision, we see images from cameras everyday and everywhere so ultimately our eyes have the capability to be everywhere albeit metaphorically. In terms of fabric manipulation I am inspired by looking at the things that people attach to their bodies, such as piercings. I explored the way in which skin stretches and changes when it is tattooed, with this in mind I have chosen to play with fabrics in that same way throughout this collection and have used them to express a person's feelings and emotions.

FS: Can you tell us about your design aesthetic?

MW: My design aesthetic has continued on from last season and hopefully grown in the same direction. I took my last collection as a starting point for my SS15 collection but made this one a lot more summery. The fabrics which I use in my designs allow for my aesthetic to show a contrast between structure and fluidity, creating strong shapes throughout my collection. In terms of colour palette I always do my fabric research six months before each collection launches. We start with sourcing fabrics and choosing colours and then begin to make samples using different techniques. I really care about attention to detail so my aesthetic is always very clean and finished. Structure is a really important aspect of my design aesthetic, and the silhouettes in my collection change a lot throughout the process.

FS: How has your collection evolved throughout the design process?

MW: It has changed a lot! As you go further along the design process, you uncover so many beautiful things which you could never have imagined in the beginning and you tend to change your mind a lot. My vision of my collection has changed since my starting point. I start by taking one direction and through that I tend to see more beauty in other things so rather than having a finished product that completely reflects my original inspiration I instead see the evolution of my collection.

FS: What fabrics and techniques you have used to help to create your vision in your SS15 collection?

MW: It is very important to me to ensure that the finishing on all of my garments is perfectly faultless and so it is important that I utilise techniques which will help to make my pieces look good. I work very closely with my machinist and we discuss the ways in which we can manipulate each fabric to look the exact way that we have envisioned it to be within the collection. All of the little details are so important to the overall continuity of the collection.

FS: How does it feel to be named a One to Watch?

MW: Very exciting! When I got the call I was really, really happy about it! It's a great opportunity and I am excited to see who else is named a One to Watch!

FS: What can we expect to see from Min Wu in the future?

MW: After showcasing at Fashion Scout London, I will be going to Paris to show my collection at the Fashion Scout Showrooms which I am very excited about! We also have a fashion event which we will be showing at in Beijing in October and another event hosted by Shanghai Fashion Week in collaboration with the British Fashion Council. They held the same event last year with another very famous Chinese boutique so I am very excited to be a part of it this year. Another project that I will be working on has been inspired by one of my best friends getting married. I am working on a bridal wear project in which I hope to create a more fashionable and less conventional take on bridal wear.

FS: What are you excited about us seeing in your new SS15 collection?

MW: We are working on shoes for the new season which is great I am not a footwear designer but I love shoes. We have found a shoe sampling studio and they really understand my vision which is good so I am really excited about that.

Interview by Charlotte Muscat, Contributor, (@CharlotteLM9)
Images, by Hannah Farrell, (@HFazzzz).

EXCLUSIVE| SS15 Ones to Watch Winners Announced

Fashion Scout, the international showcase for fashion innovation, can now announce Cassandra Verity Green, Keiko Nishiyama, Min Wu and Youjia Jin as the SS15 Ones To Watch designers.

Cassandra Verity Green

Taking inspiration from her personal experience, emotion and memory, knitwear designer Cassandra Verity Green’s body of work is one that intertwines a playful sensibility with innocence. Recently graduating from Central Saint Martins in 2013, the technique driven designer has gained sponsorship from Spinexpo and Santoni Shanghai and already caught the attention of press among the likes of Dazed and Confused and Hunger.

Keiko Nishiyama

Japanese born Keiko Nishiyama graduated from MA fashion design at London College of Fashion in 2013 before starting up her label. Showing her graduate collection to positive review, her designs play with imbalance and are crafte from delicate hand-drawn prints. Her attention to detail and innovative work have already been featured in publications such as i-D Magazine. 

Min Wu

Min Wu designs her collections with a bold modern woman in mind. Interlacing lines and fluid shapes to create strong visual contrast, she was a part of our graduate showcase in September 2013. An individual who strived to explore the original beauty that is born from the deliberate combination of functional materials, with particular emphasis on technology and the reflection of this in the world today, we look forward to seeing what she brings to the One to Watch showcase in September.

Youjia Jin

Youjia Jin, fashion designer and buyer, graduated with an MA in womenswear from the London College Of Fashion this year. Having been previously educated at Central Saint Martins and the Beijing Institute of Fashion and Technology, she was awarded a top 10 menswear designer award in China. Her previous collections have received huge praise from top UK and international press, including that of British Vogue, British GQ, i-D and iLOOK Magazine.

-

Instrumental in raising the profile of emerging design on a global scale, the Ones to Watch show is the first place to see the very best in up and coming talent. Always one of the most anticipated shows of the season, they were selected by a panel of industry experts, including Hilary Alexander, Robert Cavell-Clarke of Not Just A Label, Judith Tolley of CFE London, Fashion Scout alumni Phoebe English, our Ones to Watch stylist Rebekah Roy, and Martyn Roberts Fashion Scout’s director.

Be sure to keep up to date with everything SS15 on the blog, our Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

By Josh Walker, Editor, (@josh_walker_)
Images, courtesy of the designers.