LFW Ones To Watch: Hellen Van Rees & Lug Von Siga

During day two of London Fashion Week (I'm running behind on the edits sorry) I saw two presentations at Fashion Scout which really impressed me. These designers are future ones to watch for sure.

Central St Martins graduate Hellen Van Rees debuted her S/S 14 collection 'FUZZLAYERGLOSSBOX' with her first solo presentation at LFW. Boxy shapes on top with sheer and vinyl fabric panels dominated the earlier pieces, whilst the signature style tweed of the designer cropped up on a basket raffia style weave in multi colours. The rest of the palette was in stark black and white, with structural details and pleats to keep things interesting. Dresses were the big success story of the collection - a backless halter-neck design in black was a particular favourite, alongside maxi lengths with short trains. 

Meanwhile, Turkish designer Gül Ağiş returned to LFW for the second time with her brand LUG VON SIGA. The SS14 collection was inspired by the rich cultural and historical heritage of her home region and Ağiş also took the show as an opportunity to express political issues with her own personal interpretation of the Gezi Park protests and anti-government resistance. Expressing ‘the anger within’ with a collection entitled ‘tribal attitudes’, Gül’s original starting point was designing tribal masks. These quickly developed into unique prints in a palette of caramel, beige, black, white and coral red. Overall the collection had a sports luxe aesthetic with fabrics such as silk, crepe and leather dominating. There were touches of Christopher Kane in some of the prints and cut out dresses, whilst the decorative elements - leather trimmings, laser-cut embroidery and futuristic metal bead work – were reminiscent of Emilio Pucci last season. Particular highlights included oh so wearable monochrome tailored separates and dresses trimmed with long swishy fringes which brought down the house with applause. 

See more from Hellen Van Rees after the jump