Abbey Clancy's Top Picks London Fashion Week

MUSIC: Gun by CHVRCHES

Today's our first day at London Fashion Week.

We're here, we're getting ready, we've got a top team.

They end up making this look OK!

London Fashion Week is an amazing showcase

for the best British designers.

So, over the next few days, we're going to three different shows -

SIBLING, Hunter and Giles.

And we're going to show you what makes them so special.

And we're going to get up close and personal

with some of the actual pieces that are hot off the runway.

I think, growing up, I always wanted to wear designer clothes.

I was always looking through magazines, saying,

"I want that, I want that,", but I didn't have the money.

I would find the high street version of, or a vintage version of.

As I've grown up, and I'm working hard and earning more money,

I can afford these high-end pieces.

But I'm still a Scouser, and I'm born and bred to bargain hunt.

So it does hurt me, spending a lot of money on clothes!

I like to be quite savvy with pieces I'm buying.

If I am going to buy, it will be something that's timeless,

a wardrobe staple that you can wear forever.

They do make you feel incredible.

There is something about a high-end piece that does make you feel great.

MUSIC: First Contact by Lab Of Music

Yeah, it's just like anything goes in Fashion Week.

But I imagine some people just dress up for the week,

and then, next week, go back to wearing their normal clothes.

We're en route to SIBLING.

SIBLING is an amazing show, it's so exciting, it's one to watch.

It's a tongue-in-cheek, vibrant, anything-goes kind of show.

They're known for their knitwear.

They started out with menswear and they wanted to make men

feel like they had more options than the grandad knit.

A few years ago, they started womenswear,

and the show is always fantastic, it's one of my favourites.

Anything goes, any material.

They use mohair, PVC, all kinds of wool.

And they're really, really creative. And it's a special show to be at.

Originally, SIBLING was a trio of designers,

and, horrendously, Joe passed away a few months ago.

And it was their last collection as a three.

So it is going to be a bit of a bittersweet occasion today.

A celebration of his work,

but also I think there'll be a few teary eyes in the building today.

-Hi! How are you?

-Very well, thanks.

-You OK?

We're here, we're at the SIBLING show. It looks great.

Last year was all about '80s vibe,

Fun, girly, giant bows, think Madonna.

And I can't wait to see what they've got in store for us today.

# Do you recall, not long ago

# We would walk on the sidewalk

# Innocent, remember?

# All we did was care for each other

# But the night was warm

# We were bold and young

# All around the wind blows

# We would only hold on to let go

# Blow a kiss, fire a gun

# We need someone to lean on

# Blow a kiss, fire a gun

# All we need is somebody to lean on

# Blow a kiss, fire a gun

# We need someone to lean on

# Blow a kiss, fire a gun

# All we need is somebody to lean on. #

Oh, my God, it was amazing.

Fantastic show. The mix of the PVC with the crochet,

with the beaded wool - it was just incredible.

One of the members of SIBLING passed away, very sadly.

I think it was probably a very emotional

show for a lot of people to see.

It was great that it was very optimistic

and it ended with a very happy collection.

I think the thing about fashion is that the name will

live on without him and it will be a testament to him.

I'm really excited now, because I'm going to go backstage

and get me hands on a piece of that gorgeousness.

-Hot off the catwalk!

-Here you go!

-Let's have a look.

-THEY GASP Oh, wow.

-How gorgeous is that?

Amazing.

Let's see what they've given us.

Ah, God, this is actually one of my favourite pieces out of the show.

This beautiful, honeycombed crochet.

Beautiful maxi dress.

Big thigh split,

and it's just fabulous for over a bikini, summer party.

I love it. The quality is just fantastic, and all this detail.

It's not like a flimsy crochet, there's quite a chunkiness to it.

It just feels so luxurious.

And it definitely comes under the high-end category.

Gorgeous.

Can't wait to see what this feels like on.

MUSIC: Die Young by Keha

Let me think about high end. High end?

I would say it's special, quality, lasting.

Money, money, money, money, money.

High end is those labels we all really, really aspire to.

It's not about price, it's just about something that's incredibly

luxurious and something that suits your needs and fits your life.

Doesn't need to be expensive, it needs to be special and different.

Sometimes, you're paying for the most incredible dress.

You know, it's an amazing dress that transcends mere dressdom.

It's got to speak to the person who's looking at it.

It's got to be sold at the right price.

There's a lot more to it now than just writing down,

"We are a high-end brand."

MUSIC: Infinite Love Without Fulfilment by Grimes

So Fashion Week this year is in Soho, which is great.

But it's a pain, because you have to walk everywhere.

Especially in these shoes.

So now we're off to Fashion East.

It's a presentation created by a group of designers,

and it's an amazing initiative that supports up-and-coming talent

and showcases their collections.

This is the perfect place to find out what it takes

to become a high-end designer.

Wouldn't it be well better to just sack this all off

and just sit in there and eat cakes?

SHE LAUGHS

Pfft!

And think it's just up here, I can see a crowd, so must be it.

This is Lulu, she's the founder of Fashion East,

and the godmother of fashion.

-Godfather.

-Godfather of fashion.

I know you've established millions of designers through Fashion East,

like some of our favourites, like Jonny Saunders and Henry Holland...

-Roksanda.

-Roksanda. What are you looking for?

The thing about our designers is that they all have their very own,

individual perspective. And we really encourage that.

We never try to kind of...

You know, tidy things up too much, because I think part of it is about

they're learning what their brand is and what the signature is.

And Fashion East is a place where you can experiment.

And it is a big deal for them,

and, hopefully, they'll go on to have really good businesses.

-They've got to work really hard, it's tough.

-Yeah.

But, you know, that thing...

If you create a desirable product and can sell it at the right price,

that's it.

MUSIC: Style by Taylor Swift

I've got no time to go and get changed for the next show,

so, public loo, all very glamorous.

I'll be out in a sec.

Daa-dah!

And we're off to Hunter. Let's go.

Obviously, everyone knows Hunter as the wellies.

It's English, heritage, very posh.

But Hunter Original is their high-end catwalk range.

And I'm loving it.

It's really cool, like, this jacket, this neoprene,

welly-ish jacket. It's cool. And I'm a huge fan of these welly boots.

I think, having a husband who's 6' 7",

nice walk in the park in the mud, doesn't matter,

because you've got your heeled wellies on. It's great!

I love them.

The new creative director of Hunter is Alasdhair Willis,

he's Stella McCartney's husband.

It's the show to be at.

It attracts the really high-end, fashiony stars.

Like Anna Wintour... You know, we're going today...

Yeah, it's one to watch.

MUSIC: Power by Kanye West

I suppose Hunter is at the high end of the kind of boots

you wear down on the farm.

But these days, they're not just worn in the country,

they're worn in the town, that's the great difference

that this new branding of Hunter has made.

From the country to the city.

Hunter is high end, because it's heritage, it's superhigh quality.

It's something that the late Dowager,

the Duchess of Devonshire, would wear,

but also a cool, Pixie Geldof would wear to Glastonbury.

I thought the show was incredible,

I actually felt like I was in a festival. We were in this giant tent.

And it was just amazing. Really original.

There's no doubt, that, because Alasdhair is married to "a famous person",

that this also makes a lot of difference.

It's not just that we've all known him for a long time,

but also that he's bought into the whole glossy magazine world

in a way that perhaps he would not have been

had he just arrived like that, cold.

There's a whole aura built round Hunter,

and that's what we're looking at.

-Thank you.

-Congratulations!

-Thank you very much.

-It was amazing.

You know, everyone thinks of Hunter as an outdoorsy welly.

Did you want to turn it high end? Was that your...?

Well, what I wanted to do was really...

The brand always had a huge amount of potential.

Everyone has a positive experience of Hunter.

I just wanted to open that up

and really realise the potential of what it had.

So what is the definition of high end to you?

It's always got to do with quality, really.

It sounds pretty obvious and pretty boring, but I...

Quality has to be there in everything you do.

And that's something that, you know...

Hunter's rubber boots, the original boots were £90.

-For a rubber boot, that's quite an expensive product.

-Yeah.

But it's a very high-quality product and, everything we do,

we have to make sure we meet and raise the bar even higher.

So I always look for quality and I always look for detail.

And, if possible, unexpected detail.

Detail that's in there that doesn't necessarily have to be.

-Like the little cap/hood thing that you've got going on?

-Exactly.

Yes, there's lots of little parts that are put into the pieces

that don't necessarily have to be there.

But it gives you a story,

and it gives the customer a reason to buy as well.

-So detail and quality.

-Perfect, thank you.

-And I hear you've got something for me?

-Oh, yes, where is it?

Excited about this!

There you go, hopefully you can get many

pleasurable hours at the festival out of those, Abbey.

Thank you so much.

Oh! We've got the gorgeous, powdery-coloured, tie-dye welly.

Not your average welly.

It's definitely different. Summery.

I love it, I think it's cool.

Oh, I love this, I remember this from the show.

This beautiful, coloured,

it's almost fairytale, the colours they've used.

Look at the detail.

All these ruched sleeves, the big strings,

even the wire in the hood.

As you see, I'm always in black,

so this colour's maybe a bit wacky for me, but it looks great.

And this piece is so hot off the catwalk,

it's even got mud still from the show on it.

I am excited to try this on.

And hopefully it comes in black, so I can buy one.

MUSIC: Die Young by Keha

The final show that we're going to is Giles Deacon.

He's a personal friend of mine. And I just love his shows.

It's always such a big shock, he's constantly reinventing himself,

so you have no idea what you're about to expect.

For me, he dresses a woman perfectly.

He's known for his corsetry,

so much so, that I got him to make my wedding dress.

And I just can't wait to see what he's got in store for us today.

This show's the epitome of high-end. Absolutely gorgeous.

He has the best models, he has the best production on the show.

And it's just the perfect way to finish our little film.

MUSIC: Get Innocuous! by LCD Soundsystem

He's a wonderful designer, because he's all about the glamour.

He really understands luxury, he understands the luxury world.

He understands that kind of woman, and there's a drama to it.

He, again, is something that's really very London,

in that it's creative and whimsical and wild.

And not afraid.

It's unabashed, I would say, is a good word for Giles.

This is an incredible venue. It's King Charles I's banqueting house.

And I wouldn't expect anything less from Giles. Amazing!

Ooh, got to go in!

# There will be times

# The ground becomes your rest

# And as you grow

# You'll strike your mother's breast

The really interesting thing with Giles' show

is that it's quite unlike anything else you see in London.

What Giles does is really kind of borderline couture, and it's

really focusing on that sense of occasion and pomp and circumstance.

When you're buying a piece of high fashion,

it's about a story, it's about buying a stake in a story.

Sometimes, with shows like Giles', I think the clothes are almost

kind of a memento of the event that you've been to.

It's kind of like a wish-you-were-here postcard.

That was just the most incredible show. I had goosebumps throughout.

It was so spooky and eerie.

And the dresses, the prints he used, the detail was just incredible.

-Nice to meet you!

-Yeah, what's your name?

-I'm going to ask you one question.

-What's that, darling?

-I want to know what the word high end means to you?

-High end?

-And how would you define it?

-Oh, my God.

-A polite way of describing high end?

-Yes.

-Yeah.

-Or your way.

-In the relation to clothes?

-Yeah.

-Not prostitutes.

-Oh, OK.

It's good to know these sort of things.

Well, for me, high end is something that invokes a complete

world of technique and artistry.

And something very creative, something unique.

Something you certainly can't get anywhere else.

Something's that just very, very special.

So, basically your entire collection?

Insane, that show. Absolutely...

I felt like I was in a magical, spooky world.

-It was just fab.

-We always like to try and invoke that.

I think, with the last two seasons, with this one and the one before,

we've really hit on a good flow, really. It just really works.

It's what we do very well.

I had a really good time doing this collection,

the set and the venue, everything just all worked fantastically.

Some seasons, it just goes like that. And this one just did.

I think you could feel that out there.

So, is it OK if I have a little play upstairs and a little try-on?

There's only one thing, you've got to try on the Andy Pandy pyjamas.

-OK. I love them.

-Brilliant.

-Perfect.

-Good for you.

OK, I'll see you later!

You know, I think as soon as you put on a Giles dress,

you instantly feel amazing.

It's so glamorous, girly, sexy, and it feels amazing.

It's been an amazing Fashion Week.

We've been to three unbelievable

but all very, very different fashion shows.

SIBLING, Hunter and Giles.

I've realised high end is a term that can mean

loads of different things.

From very expensive, to loads of detail,

intricate fabrics, luxury fabrics.

Something created by these amazing geniuses of design.

But, for me, it's entering in that magical world where

everything's way more exciting than everyday life.

But now, for me, it's party time. So see you later!