The grunge aesthetic of the 2010s made a comeback last autumn/winter with the revival of tartan midi skirts and chunky leather.
But this season it seems the indie sleaze aesthetic is set to continue as Roksanda Ilinčić sent loose threads, leather gloves and dresses covered in trailing fabric down the runway at London Fashion Week.
But while this return might bring to mind threadbare denim and distressed T-shirts, Roksanda offered a rather more glamorous interpretation of grunge.
The Serbian-born designer staged the show on an outdoor terrace at the National Theatre on London’s South Bank, where the early autumn sunshine caught the colourful threads against the building’s concrete walls.
Backstage before the show, Roksanda said she had been inspired by Swiss-born artist Françoise Grossen, known for her large-scale sculptures made from braided and knotted rope.
“I love her beautiful monumental sculptures, usually made in this braiding technique and I loved the element of earthiness about it but also something very crafty, very arty and very connected to the women,” she explained.
“And I wanted to take the female gaze and thread it throughout the whole collection from shirts, daywear, all the way into the eveningwear.”
While the designer took the idea to extremes in her finale gowns, there were plenty of more accessible trends to take away from the collection.
The first model emerged in a fitted black jacket and wide-leg trousers, with a silk scarf draped over her shoulders and a shaggy fringed accessory tucked under one arm.
Scarves continued to appear throughout the show, tied at the neck, thrown over shoulders or left hanging from the waist.
They offered a relatively simple way to bring movement and interest to otherwise understated outfits – particularly when worn with Roksanda’s oversized tailoring.
One model wore a brown pinstriped shirt and trousers with a bright pink collar and purple gloves, while another appeared in an enormous striped coat layered over a shirt and tie.
Ilinčić brought a loose but smart edge to traditional suit tailoring.
The beauty look, meanwhile, was much more reminiscent of the signature Roksanda sleekness.
Rather than styling every model’s hair in the same way, lead hairstylist Anna Cofone, working with Authentic Beauty Concept, said she wanted to celebrate their individual textures.
“Each model’s own texture has been elevated,” she explained backstage.
“Lots of, like, hydrating textures, not a lot of product, just really effortless, and just really looking at the models’ face shape and looking at their texture, and then just enhancing it.”
Some models wore their hair straight and tucked behind their ears, while others had their natural waves, curls and tighter textures defined, with the hair kept close to the head.
Cofone said the team paid particular attention to the hairline, rather than automatically smoothing away the small curls and kinks that can give a hairstyle its character.
“I think that’s what enables each model to look like themselves rather than going in and approaching it all in the same way,” she said.
For wavy and curly hair, the team used hydrating products like the Authentic Beauty Concept Glow Spray Serum to add moisture, while straighter hair was given a little extra body without losing its natural movement.
Cofone said they avoided blow-drying most of the models’ hair, as applying heat could change its natural shape.
And for anyone attempting the look at home, her advice was less about perfecting the hair and more about feeling comfortable showing your face.
“As soon as you tuck your hair behind the ears, it’s like you’re saying, ‘Look at me – I feel good and I feel confident.’”
The minimal and natural hair textures worked well with the organic movement of the natural threads on the runway.
The palette of the show also played a huge part, as the collection began with black, ivory and chocolate brown before introducing hot pink, turquoise, yellow and lime green – sometimes all within the same outfit.
Several pieces featured abstract, painterly prints, with faces emerging from splashes of colour on silk scarves, dresses and oversized tops.
“I also introduced these wonderful faces […] they are reappearing as almost a woman peeking through to this quite abstract world, and I wanted to bring that intimacy back into the collection,” Roksanda explained.
As the show moved into eveningwear, the loose-threaded trend became less practical.
A series of dresses appeared covered in dense layers of multicoloured strands, some gathered tightly together and others left hanging freely.
One dress combined pink, grey and cream fibres in a rounded skirt, while another had long red and orange threads trailing from a bright pink bodice.
The effect was closer to the sculptures that had inspired this Roksanda collection rather than the usual pieces you see on a hanger.
Roksanda said she was particularly interested in the contrast between Grossen’s tightly braided sculptures and the strands the artist allowed to hang loose.
She described the work as “very cautiously braided but then left loose to live and breathe life of their own”.
That contrast carried through to the final looks, where the trailing threads gave way to gowns with enormous skirts that stood away from the body.
One strapless oxblood dress had a tightly fitted bodice and two great curved panels extending from the hips, while the final black gown featured an asymmetric neckline and a similarly exaggerated silhouette.
They may not offer much inspiration for an everyday wardrobe, but they showed how far Roksanda was prepared to take an idea that began with a loose thread.
Read MoreChopova Lowena sends dogs in coats down the runway at London Fashion Week
Kelly Rutherford joins front row at Kate-approved designer Patrick McDowell’s romantic show
‘Sex sells’ says Katie Price who makes London Fashion Week return for Natasha Zinko’s OnlyFans show
6 times celebrities stunned in Bob Mackie’s glittering designs
Michael Kors revives 2010s business casual with cropped blazers and high-low hems at NYFW
Actor Will Mellor: ‘Everybody should be given a chance at a long and healthy life’
