LFW SS26: Fashion Scout’s 'Ones to Watch' unveils new wave of global design talent
London’s reputation as an incubator of creative fashion talent certainly lived up to its name this week in Shoreditch, where a series of new international designers displayed their collections for the first time in Ones to Watch X Fashion Scout’s presentation, Parts One and Two.
Joaka Jaokha began her collection with a barely-there look reminiscent of rags, set against an ominous video of stone slowly disintegrating. This set an elemental feel for the rest of the collection that channelled Rick Owens. A metal bar barely covered the bust, whilst later, capri pants over a slouchy black dress adorned with metal spikes felt mighty without trying too hard.
KimLin, one of two featured winners of the Armenia-Fashion Scout competition, created a more playful mood in lime canvas and just a hint of sartorially suave 50s flight attendant. There was a pleasing contrast between the organic fabric ribbing of some of the pieces and the angularity of the silhouettes. The later lime green canvas jacket with military-style clasps over white shorts and matching socks felt unexpectedly cool for such a garish shade.
American designer Selenee continued the intimidatingly cool persona, featuring tailored jackets, coats, and gowns. A house code of the designer might be a fondness for a puffed sleeve, though it would be a mistake to assume this did anything to soften the models - instead, it only heightened their intimidating appearance. A highlight was the designer’s stab at Savile Row tailoring with a brown tweed peplum jacket that remained defiantly American, the puffed sleeve giving the look a power suit vibe.
The second Armenian designer, Sonais (joint winner of the competition) contrasted her colleague with a delightfully intelligible narrative: the sea. Her collection was backlit by images of the sea, surf, and bubbles. Naturally, polka dots were the collection’s code, featuring in a white tasselled mini dress, a towel-material coat (in both blue and white), among others. Her collection’s finale introduced a note of wit, however, with a lobster bag that preceded a spray-painted red shift dress. The collection’s theme, whilst somewhat obvious, was excellently executed - presenting very wearable and commercial pieces that felt classic and modern.
Ruaa Elmansuri showed off her Amazigh and Muslim heritage in her tailored and well-constructed collection. She paired traditional Amazigh aspects (draped hood, flowing capes, and Tifinagh letters) to embellish and shape her classic black-and-white modern tailoring in wool. In addition, her incredibly bold use of the Islamic star and crescent in metallic silver over a black wool dress was visually arresting. Her final look was adorned with a beautifully embellished veil featuring Omar Mukhtar’s anti-colonial sentiment, ‘We win or we die’. The clear vision of identity and modernity was perfectly balanced in this collection and will surely soon be seen by everyone.
Designz by Minaaz concluded the first show with an injection of Dubai glamour into the London scene. Her menswear featured bedazzled lapels in suitably blingy golds and reds. However, these more refined looks were only meant as the appetizer to her matching womenswear collection. A black men’s suit adorned with bronze roses matched an evening column dress with a detachable train embellished with the same floral motif. This collection had an overarching glitzy and boisterous attitude that would attract the customer looking for a piece of the Gulf in rainy London.
In the second part of Fashion Scout’s presentation, shown on Sunday night, we witnessed six more designers present their collections.
Bergman Designs, a Finnish designer, commenced the show with a bold collection of grungy and dirt-fringed gowns that were designed to tilt heads rather than please in the classic sense. Guided by the principle ‘more is more’, the designer showed a tiered dress overlain with petals of fabric fringed in dirt. Another highlight was an umbrella look where the model seemed to be mummified in newspaper reels. It was a distinctive collection that was intended to unsettle but was no less admirable in scope.
La Toile proceeded with a more classically ‘sexy’ collection that commenced with a black silk dress featuring a cut-out back to expose a fine metal chain. The next look was a matching black two-piece in silk, cut low on the waist and slightly flared at the wrist. The rest of the collection hit the same evening-wear-done-well note, culminating in a sheer black dress that was entirely sheer save for sparse black bead embellishments. It was a well-deserved viral moment from the laudable collection when the older model who wore the gown stepped out to rapturous applause.
Nichoir was next. Taking his inspiration from dark gothic romance, his collection felt equally as cool without feeling performative. He featured big shoulders and a strictly black, white, and red colour palette to balance edge with classic tailoring. A highlight was a black military-style jacket that was flanked by red houndstooth for drama, worn over impossibly short shorts. The look was both classic and witty - Slimane-esque without being too referential.
Lanna Parell is a designer who, just three months after her graduate collection, might be said to value beauty over concept. That being said, she has done so with absolute refinement and precision. ‘A Walk on a Winter Beach’ was evidently evocative enough for the Lancastrian to produce several beautifully constructed looks in a muted palette of burgundy, brown, and white. She cited a commitment to natural fabric, displaying a crimped silk dress that seemed layered over itself several hundred times. Another highlight was a high-necked burgundy two-piece, simple in itself except for the beautiful, pressed column detail in the oversized sleeves and high neck.
Yonzu, a designer from Seoul with four collections under her belt, went next with her eclectic collection. She began with a square-patterned green and blue jumper over brown latex shorts, providing an unusual clash of colours. The evolved streetwear theme continued in the next look with a padded jacket that sported an attached burgundy scarf. Finally, Yonzu debuted her take on the classic retro trench, with a high collar and puffed sleeves. The coat encapsulated Yonzu’s approach to menswear that she discussed backstage -men’s tailoring executed with heightened feminine elements.
Nathan Slate’s presentation began with flies buzzing and a strangulated voice reading a Kipling poem (the designer could not remember which one when asked). It set a dystopian tone for an impressive collection based on humanity’s demise, soundtracked by our sole survivors: flies - “The last human hymn will be the buzzing of flies.” His opening look was a long caftan dyed using Slate’s own technique of ‘rain dye’, which involves leaving the garment outside for several weeks. Flies were later incorporated into the work through Swarovski crystals that plagued a simplistic white sheer column dress and face covering. Slate’s palette remained white, blue, and neutral - a horrifying but no less exquisite choice, given the subject matter at hand.
