SAVILE ROW TAKES SPOTLIGHT AT DESIGN EVENT

January 14 2012

It must have come as something of a surprise to some of the younger visitors at ‘London Collections: Men’ to see bespoke tailoring up close for the first time. They did so at the ‘English Gentleman’ presentation put on by Savile Row, with the support of the Woolmark Company, at the splendid Spencer House, and preconceptions of fusty old tailoirs and boring old suits must have been rapidly dispelled.

For the first time, Savile Row bespoke tailors joined the ranks of young fashion designers and manufacturers taking part in ‘London Collections: Men’. But they did it their way, opting to present their craftsmanship on tableaux of models in the grand surroundings of Spencer House rather than the catwalk shows favoured by others.

ROW BRINGS KUDOS

Their presence undoubtedly added considerable kudos to what was only the second such event, and attracted considerable attention from overseas media visitors. They just loved the splendour of Spencer House and the bespoke outfits on display there.

Ranging from the country and sporting  through glittering military uniforms, velvet smoking jackets, lounge suits, black and white tie evening dress and topcoats, the presentation captured the sheer elegance, quality and style diversity that Savile Row offers.

London’s finest accessory people helped to make the ensembles style-right, with plenty of hats, Jermyn Street shirts and shoes.

This lavish showcase, featuring over 60 outfits, was made possible by the support of the Woolmark Company, which sees Savile Row as providing the very best platform for fine wool cloth.

NEXT SEASON?

Whether the tailors will be a feature of future such seasonal shows remains to be seen. The 'London Collections: Men' saw its launch just last year, opened by the Prince of Wales. It established itself as a quite separate entity from the womenswear London Collections running at the same time.

This season, preceding the women's shows by a month, the event is bigger and better, hosting a full programme of designer catwalk shows as well as an exhibition. It provides a much needed display for British menswear.

See further details and pix on the following page. Outfits seen at Spencer House are shown here but were not individually identified.