Giles Deacon and Gareth Pugh Fall 2008

Yesterday at London’s Fall Fashion Week, the collections of Giles Deacon and Gareth Pugh were screaming McQueen. Deacons line, inspired by horror flick The Masque of The Red Death, featured “femme fatales in a gothic disco” as put by the designer. Models walked out in puffy satin vests, webbed looking sweaters, billowy floor sweeping capes, and insecticidal dresses complete with white face makeup, black lipstick and in some cases, gauzy veils tied around their faces. There were several dresses that appeared to have been slashed, and large itchy looking furry pieces. The dark blood reds, blacks, blues and grays only added to the grim feeling, however the collection was still pleasing, if not totally consistent.

Gareth Pugh was also channeling some good ol’ Alexander in his line, where the models looked like warrior queens from Predator in samurai dresses made from zippers, safety pins and PVC, among other things. The focus was strong, emphasized shoulders in dark grays and black. Though as a show it was obviously a spectacle to watch, most of the looks were unwearable, for instance a hoop-skirt dress made entirely from goats hair. There were however some looks that succeeded, like the over-sized beaded sweater on top of basic leggings, and a crosshatch patterned, long sleeve leather dress over matching straight leg trousers.