Hell For Leather

"The Fabric of the season" say Elle Magazine, and I couldn't agree more. This durable, long-lasting, and versatile material owned the Autumn/Winter runway shows in various forms, all to stunning effect.

Expect belts, bags, gloves, shorts, dresses and skirts this season, not forgetting the most obvious of purchases- the leather jacket. This wardrobe staple returns season to season, and as we head into the winter months there is plenty of choice available from the likes off Swiss, Akris and English favourite Alexander McQueen. Balmain have created my personal favourite as it is a fairly classic garment, yet the broad shoulders add that high-style look.

The leather dress is also set to filter it's way down to the British High Street from the catwalks of designers such as Alberta Feretti, Chanel and Loewe. Loewe's dress in particular has a fascinating homogenous appeal to it.

"Your one and only pleasure, all decked in lace and leather." - Britney Spears

Still not convinced? The love for leather doesn't end here. An array of garments cropped up throughout London, New York, Paris, and Milan, so be sure to keep your eyes peeled for key items when out on the cold and frosty high-street this A/W.

My Jesus has broad shoulders

Now that fashion for women turns to androgynous attire, the female figure is flouted with a masculine edge.

The cuts of garments this Autmn/Winter is far more crisp, sheer and defined. The sharp shouldered jacket is a great example of well-formed design, such as those produced by fashion house Balmain under the watchful eye of creative director Christophe Decarnin. Pierre Balmain, original founder of the famous fashion house was born in France, and so it made perfect sense that this glitzy collection was shown at the Paris Ritz, showcasing extravogant garments later to be reflected throughout the Great British High Street far more subtley.

Emilio de la Morena, a spanish designer, used a range of well structured body hugging dresses. He astounded the socialite onlookers in London with outrageously daring colours of  vermillion red, valencia orange, gold and aramanth deep purple, while flamboyant curvaceous sculptures were supported around the shoulders and neck.

The decoration of such dresses also had structural elements to it. For instance the geometric patterns used by designers such as Holly Fulton resembling robotic internal engineering or the collection of dresses referencing perfume bottles by Mary Katrontzou (one of my favourite designers of the moment) that incorporate symmetric curves to nip their wearers in at the waist.

These collections illustrate how architectural tailoring does not mean women worldwide are set to wear boring box-like outfits, taste and shapeless, as curves and colour dominate this Autumn/Winter trend.

Somewhere over The Rainbow

With such dismal weather we Brits once again have been left disappointed this summer.

However as grey skies hovered above, beneath lay an array of colour in the way we dressed. From Tye-dye to techno, the British High-Street flaunted it all. But what's in store next, as surely the weather can only get worse?

As we head into Autumn/Winter '09 don't be so keen to cast those brights aside as colour is not completely deceased this season.

Peter Pilotto, Erdem & Marni all used vibrant colour in a range of techno-floral print dresses they sent strutting down their A/W runways.

Versace, Gucci, and Emanuel Ungaro too displayed coats and dresses in vibrant colours; blocks of pink, purple and orange. Dior, with an entire ensemble of dresses in various colours, shapes, cuts and lengths involving paisley patterning, luxurious beading, and quantities of light, bright, and flowing material, gave an oriental feel to his runway that astounded many with its sheer energy.

And so, don't feel only grey this season in the wet weather, but rather red with love, pink with passion, green with tranquility, yellow with optimism, and orange with warmth, and somewhere over the rainbow skies may be blue.