London Fashion Week goes 1960s... with a twist

London – The first full day of London Fashion Week kicked off with a nod to the Swinging Sixties by Irish designer and LFW veteran Paul Costelloe and Turkish designer Bora Aksu.

1960s-style Mod dresses and workwear in pastel linens, floral silk jacquards, and understated tweeds abounded in Costelloe's Spring/Summer collection, "Le ciel est bleu".

The once-private stylist for Princess Diana presented his "ode to Paris" – 40 years after showing at the first ever LFW in 1984 – in a call back to his fashion beginnings working as a design assistant in the French capital. In a modern twist to the outfits with his debut hosiery line, Costelloe paired trending long striped socks with stilettos.

Speaking to the Irish Independent newspaper ahead of the show, Costelloe said the hybrid look was "akin to Emily in Paris," the hit Netflix series starring Lily Collins, whose character Emily Cooper's experimental fashion choices have split opinions among viewers.

A short walk away from Costelloe's Parisian-inspired runway, models at the Bora Aksu show strutted through a sun-drenched rose garden in a central London churchyard, draped in layers of sheer, delicate fabric. Pastel colourways and floral patterns alongside polka dots and bows recalled the traditional roots of the trendy "coquette" aesthetic.

Outfits with intricate lacework, tailored jackets, and light knitwear were completed with cat-eye sunglasses and vintage hairdos piled high. The slim, layered silhouettes were a "nod to the 60s," Aksu said backstage after the show, along with sunglasses and pearl earrings – favourites of his late Turkish mother to whom the show was dedicated.

"You know, they have that femininity, and that coquette look, but they're still quite strong," Aksu explained, describing his mother as an independent working woman who explored her individual style through creating her own clothes.

Greek designer Dimitra Petsa (Di Petsa), meanwhile, travelled further back in time to ancient Greek mythology with her "My Body is a Labyrinth" collection, inspired by the myth of Theseus and Princess Ariadne and celebrating feminine pleasure and summer nostalgia.

Wet-look dresses and jumpsuits, seen notably on actress Zendaya, hugged the models adorned with barely-there chest jewels and fishing nets. Mermaids and sea gods seemed to emerge from the waters with wet hair and sunburnt skin, in immaculate asymmetrical swimsuits and cut-out tops, mixed with more straightforward red or electric-blue pieces and colourful flip-flops.

For the show's finale, the models linked together with a long red thread, recalling the spool Ariadne gave to Theseus to help him find his way through the labyrinth (AFP).