LFW – Vogue Talents Fashion Showcase 2012

Vogue Italia and the Italian Cultural Institute London showcased a mid-afternoon Cocktail party for new and talented designers participating in the International Fashion Showcase for 2012.

The building which resembled an old country house with high ceilings and aristocratic furnishings was the perfect place to discover the exciting new talent within.
On entry, viewers were introduced to Come For Breakfast, a label constructed by Antonio Romano and Francesco Alagna. Combining themselves together after meeting, they have made a creative and skilled duo, generating a look which is simple, modern and minimalist.

Their Autumn/Winter 2012 collection sees a new evolution for the brand, with garments designed specifically for females. Using this basis of ‘an urban trip’, the collection looks at street and city wear made with a series of sophifisticated materials and easy going garments.
CO|TE, the next showcase was one of our favourite. The duo of Tomaso Anfossi and Francesco Ferrai displayed a completely stunning set of designs for Autumn/Winter 2012. The pair have taken on board an idea which involves women who like to experiment with their clothes and stray away from the norm to create a look of layers and a jersey overlaid over a light blue shirt with intricate rose coloured feather neckpiece was a personal favourite from their collection. To pinpoint one favourite would be a mistake as all of their ideas were adorable.

Coliàc by Martina Agrasseli was a beautiful vintage collection of jewellery displayed at the heart of the showcase. After working with prestigious designers such as Jean Paul Gaultier and Christian Louboutin creating accessories, Martina moved into her own costume jewellery design using different blended materials. The Autumn/Winter collection for 2012 has developed to feature gloves and belts, all of which fit perfectly with the classic theme to the label.
Caterina Gatta well and truly stole our hearts with her demonstration of talent. Displaying her personality throughout her work, Caterina put together a tasteful collection of materials to present vintage at its best through already famous designers.

The most striking and prevailing style material in the collection was Versace, making an eye catching and to die for range of clothing from printed and coloured classic textiles. We simply cannot wait to get our hands on these! Francesco Ballestrazzi brought the collection to life even more (if that is actually possible!) through a range of fantastic hats. Using dazzling and daring colours, head wear was created from flowers and flat boards which slightly resembled graduation hats, to wear in a completely new inventive context.

A-WAR Couture by A-lab Milano was next in line and illustrated a contrast range of incandescent ideas. Inspiration for their collection filtered from the 40s as well as Japanese medieval times and following such beautiful pieces saw Nicholas Julitta’s collection of 100% organic clothing.
The point and purpose of this event allowed a superb invasion into refreshing Italian talent and design, exciting to be a part of and certainly exciting to be worn. All of the designers have definitively made their country proud.

Photos: Sara Reverberi and Kellie Griffiths