If you want outrageous trends, this season has plenty to offer - from saggy harem pants to jackets with shoulders so big that they can double as launch pads. But for those who are looking for something more, a growing number of fashion labels are thinking away from the mainstream.
These designers don't pander to trends; instead, they focus on creating beautiful pieces that are thought-provoking, contemporary and wearable - and such designers are becoming more relevant, especially at a time when women are looking for clothes that are inspired and timeless.
Although names such as Raf Simons at Jil Sander, Yohji Yamamoto and Alber Elbaz at Lanvin have been creating styles like this for years, lower-profile designers such as Sharon Wauchob, Roland Mouret and Boudicca are also carving a new niche for themselves. Their concepts are more avant garde, but their clothes aim to flatter and beautify women, not scare them off. Their pieces have an imaginative twist that takes them out of the ordinary, whether through an unusual cut, fabric or technique.
Boudicca (named after the warrior queen of British folklore) is a little-known British label invited by the Chambre Syndicale to be part of the haute couture calendar, and which has a cult following thanks to its dramatic pieces. Founded by Zowie Broach and Brian Kirkby in 1997, the label operates in the highly conceptual corner of London fashion with sculpted tailoring (occasionally severe and forbidding), strong sensual lines, a couture-quality finish and an adult sensibility.
Broach says many customers wear their pieces over and over again, although originally they hadn't set out to make timeless fashion. 'Each idea has its own properties,' she says. 'Idea one can, after many days [of] consideration, stress and trials, be something that stands alone, be individual.'
Boudicca's work is assiduously researched and intensely personal. The designers look to society and political issues for inspiration, ranging from anti-capitalism to the series of emotions felt by an individual over 24 hours. A collection can begin with 'a conversation that generates ideas, a series of questions, sometimes an answer, or a journey to understand a language', says Broach.
