The LOOK Show SS/11

Between editing some of the 200+ photos I took on Friday and channeling Lady Gaga for a friend’s birthday celebrations, I had very little time left yesterday to actually write about the LOOK Show SS/11. Suffice to say it was so much fun, especially as my pal Polly came with me, and between celeb spotting (inc. Olivia Palermo and Sophie Ellis-Bextor) and champagne sipping we mingled with the other fashionable guests and dined out on nibbles by M&S – and that’s before the show even started.

I must say I wasn’t expecting the LOOK Show to be such a well rounded event – most Fashion Week shows are a fast-paced, get in and get out affair with very little room for mingling and canapes – in contrast LOOK magazine, in partnership with some of the best loved labels on the high street, put on one of the funnest shows of the season.

After arriving in London I met up with Polly and we queued dutifully outside Victoria House along with hoards of fashion-hungry women dressed in leather, heels and red lipstick. Fashion bloggers, members of the press and avid LOOK readers mingled with one another once inside, sipping champagne, dressing up for photobooth snaps and craning their necks to look at the next celebrity to step through the door. I stopped joining in after managing to cover a Hawaiian shirted waitress in several glasses of champagne, smashing the empty flutes over the painted concrete floor with aplomb…

After picking shards of glass off the floor and apologising profusely, I took my seat and waited for the show to start, getting a glimpse of New York It girl Olivia Palermo, below, in the process. Once the lights went down and show began the ‘who’s who on the front row’ debate settled down and our attention fell on the catwalk. SS/11 trends of 70s glamour, Mad Men influenced tailoring and bright, clashing colours were evident at New Look, Warehouse and Mango while M&S and Monsoon provided a more classic outlook, with crisp white shirts and printed silk kaftans respectively.

French Connection busted out their ‘London’ dress, a special limited edition design created to celebrate London Fashion Week, along with tan leather skirts and bell-sleved blouses. H&M focused on blocks of bold colour with coral, orange, yellow and emerald green standing out while River Island, who got the largest cheer of the show, wowed with grown up tailoring and some lovely floral prints.

At the end of the show the three finalists of the LOOK/Lorraine Curvy Supermodel competition took to the catwalk with LOOK editor Ali Hall and GMTV’s Mark Heyes to reveal the winner, Lindsey O’Hagan, 19, who wore a refreshingly genuine look of surprise as she accepted her bouquet of flowers and hugs from the runners up. Although only a size 12, this victory for Lindsey will hopefully pave the way for more ‘plus size’ models to strut their stuff on British catwalks in future seasons.

After the show we made our way to the retro photobooth and with a little help from the lovely New Look folks we donned hats and sunglasses, making full use of the wind machine while we pulled faces in front of the camera. A few peach mojitos later and we were, sadly, ready to leave. I had an amazing day and met some lovely people and could still pinch myself that out of the 40,000 odd readers to apply for tickets I was lucky enough to win a pair.

I hope everyone had as much fun as Polly and I did and all I can say is roll on the LOOK Show AW/11! More photos to follow…