AHNDE make a splash at LFW

This year’s LFW might be over, but it provided the perfect opportunity for several new labels to make their debut and that’s something that new brand AHNDE absolutely nailed.

Led by founder and creative director Tanya Steven, the London-based women’s wear label saw their debut spring/summer 2014 collection unveiled during their debut show at the Institute of Contemporary Arts on The Mall. The show’s set was designed by Mansikkamäki+JOY and was complemented throughout by an extended musical composition written exclusively for AHNDE by Luke Clayton Thompson.

Steven’s background in the arts and engineering means that the label practices high research in design, distilling ideation and integrating craftsmanship into the design process as standard, and that’s something that definitely shines through in the brand’s work.

The label drew inspiration from the chemistry between high art and subcultures for their debut show and explored the sensuality and provocative tension that exists between the refined and the broken. This culminated in a collection of 22 looks that effortlessly told a darkly romantic tale that revolved around the friction between love and decay, forest nights and youth culture, dream states, transience and beauty.

Fabrics included silks and waxed cotton and some of the meticulous thread work was even hand-embroidered in India. The result was a wonderfully decadent collection of evening gowns, jackets, skirts and trousers, and it’s clear that this label won’t be fading from the limelight any time soon.

AHNDE have already enlisted the services of Luke Clayton Thompson – the British film-maker and artist behind the debut show’s music – to direct a short film that’s inspired by the collection and this is expected to launch before Christmas.

The brand is definitely a contender for our favourite new label to have emerged from this year’s LFW, and we can’t wait to see what they produce in the future!

Ellie Owen

You can find out more about AHNDE on their website or check out their debut spring/summer 2014 collection on Vimeo.