London Fashion Week's fab four (and two are Canadian!)
London Fashion Week is growing into one of the world's pre-eminent showcases of sartorial innovation. Maggie Wrobel sifts out the designers to watch, this season and beyond
ERDEM Montreal-born Erdem Moralioglu’s love affair with florals and lace has been well documented (the Duchess of Cambridge wore a fitted lace number by the designer during her Canadian visit last summer). For fall/winter 2012, the designer gave his signature details a twist, pairing painterly blooms with sculpted black rubber.Antonio de Moraes Barros Filho / Getty Images
CHRISTOPHER KANE He’s only 30, but Donatella Versace has already compared Scot Christopher Kane to her late brother Gianni. If spring’s appliquéd flowers were tailor-made for a wide-eyed coquette, for instance, his leopard-and-leather vision for fall brings to mind her tougher, sexier friend.Suzanne Plunkett / Handout
MARK FAST He hails from chilly Winnipeg, so it makes sense that Mark Fast scaled his way up London’s fashion ladder to become known as the king of knitwear. For fall, he re-imagined his signature body-hugging silhouettes in buttery yellow and soft peach, adding bold, furry accents and long necklaces.Ben Cawthra / The Canadian Press
MARY KATRANTZOU With just a handful of collections under her belt, Greek designer Mary Katrantzou has enjoyed a meteoric rise thanks to her use of prints. For fall, she paid tribute to the typewriter and the rotary phone, proving old and new can happily co-exist.Jonathan Short / Handout