NO MORE SEASONS
Climate change and its threat to the traditional seasonal collections that have formed the backbone to the fashion industry has been hot gossip in the business for the last few years. Everyone is talking about season-less clothes or clothing for all climates, like it’s a bad thing! As a designer that has always been trans-seasonal, I for one will welcome a much-needed change to the fashion system.
There is nothing more annoying than going into a retailer in February as London is experiencing its worst snowfall for 20 years, and all you can find is gladiator sandals and sheer jersey vests; and likewise in July all you can find is wool coats. Isn’t it about time that everybody woke up to the reality that there is no strong difference between summer and winter anymore?
Retailers and designers need to understand that the fashion seasons and the weather seasons are seriously off-kilter. Maybe we need to redress the balance? I’m not saying that collections should lack diversity and reproduce the same fabrics season after season, but there is no diversity in offering a collection of limited styles when the climate has changed.
No-one loves variety more than I do and being creative with styling, mixing-up layers and encouraging people to wear my garments in a multitude of ways is my thing! I love wearing all things warm and woolly just as much as I love wearing all things cool and cropped. Why can’t we be offered it all year round?
As the seasons blur, maybe it is not only retailers and designers that have to adapt. With the economic climate also in crisis and everyone spending less on fashion, perhaps consumers also need a wake-up call. Surely buying less and investing in good design and quality has more seasonal life-span than anything the ‘fast-fashion’ retailers have to offer.
So, for the love of fashion, let the impending devastation of the industry commence!
