“Fashion to me is a really personal thing. Some may like the things you do, others may not. But it’s what you like yourself that matters. I used to always care what people would think about my style and fashion sense, but now I don’t. Style is an individual innate characteristic. People can own the same item but it’s how that item is styled that makes it different.

Supporting young designers can help them not only reach the masses with their unique designs, but it can also allow you to stand out from the normal high street crowd in something unique and special.

Young British Designers showcases some of the most talented designers currently making their mark on the fashion industry.

I think I am slowly making myself bankrupt looking on YBD as well. Everything is so pretty and perfect for summer. Below are my key pieces for a perfectly versatile summer wardrobe:

1. Kreszenia Dress

borne by Elise Berger

This dress is so very versatile. It can work both day and night , casual or dressy. It’s also one of those pieces that can move easily between seasons. It’s perfect for a nice summer walk, or coffee in the winter. It’s just perfect. Styled with nude accessories it would also be perfectly on trend.

2. Jessie Dress by Alicia Stone

This dress isn’t just on trend with a light pink/peach colour it is also perfect for the summer. Hopefully the weather improves in Britan or you are lucky enough to be jetting off somewhere sunny – this is guaranteed to be a staple item in your summer wardrobe. Paired with strappy wedges and chunky jewellery it would look totally in place at a cocktail bar overlooking the med at sunset drinking a Gin and Tonic.

3. Tobacco Double Layer Cropped Jacket by MASC

THIS IS ESSENTIAL for any fashionista. If you’re in Britian, or away, summer or winter you will get great use out of this piece. It’s on trend in a nude tone and paired with denim skinny jeans, a white tank top and a cute pair of stilettos you will look both simple and sophisticated.

4. Feather Bracelet with Jade Beads by LeiVanKash

I’m such a lover of stacking bracelets so this is a key accessory in my wardrobe. Coming in Royal Blue as well, it is the ideal pop of colour to a simple outfit.

5. Sterling Silver ‘Orbital’ Ring by Imogen Belfield

This ring is so delicate and beautifuly designed. It would suit any woman who wants to add a touch of glamour to their hand. It’s very glamorous yet simple at the same time, it’s the perfect mix of both.

6. Iona Wedges in Emerald Green by Sophie Gittins

LOVE. LOVE. LOVE. LOVE. LOVE. LOVE. LOVE

These are by far my favourite wedges. They are perfect for this summer and will be a definite staple in my suitcase come June.”

Sometimes a pair of shoes gets into your head and won’t let go.

You can see yourselves in them, see them making every outfit burst into life, see everyone staring at your gorgeous new heels. What you absolutely can’t see is your life, your wardrobe, your summer without them.

It’s been that way with me since I laid eyes on the Sirena skyscraper heels from Atalanta Weller. They are everything I love about young British designers and they are everything I love, personally, in a shoe.

They are high. But being made by Atalanta I know that I will be able to walk in them all day long with that peculiar springy comfort only her designs give me. They have an element of strapped up bondage about them. Something that makes me feel at once secure yet with a touch of naughty rebel about it too.

They have been created in an inspired colour way of Bamboo (a sort of soft camel shade that works so well with sunny day legs) and Poppy on heels and soles (a sort of orangey red that zings into view and sings of summer in a fresher than Louboutin kind of way).

Three times NEWGEN winner Atalanta Weller just goes from strength to strength whilst staying true to her bold, graphic and retro futuristic design signature.

The Sirena is my favourite so far….unless, of course, you include the up and coming AW12 collection. But that’s a whole other story.

Charlotte Taylor SS12

There’s a new feeling in the air. It’s to do with January and February being done. It’s to do with the last few glorious days of unexpected sunshine telling of wonders to come. And the daffodils. And the snowdrops. And sweet smelling hyacinths too.

(And did we mention the new summer brights arriving on a daily basis from our bright young designers?)

Atalanta Weller SS12

It’s to do with Easter being in view, with summer holidays being investigated, discussed and booked, with opaque tights starting to look, well, opaque. In a bad way.

But for us at Young British Designers it’s mostly about the wonderful new season deliveries fit to burst their boxes with colour and all manner of delectation.

There are just so many pieces making our eyes pop and our hearts sing!

Fanny & Jessy SS12

Colours are running riot with our senses: Purples, yellows and fresh, bright greens from Charlotte Taylor; Tulip Reds and Emeralds from Sophie Gittins; Pillar Box Reds and Jades from Fanny & Jessy; Cobalt Blues and Oranges from J.W.Anderson; Ochres and Aquas from Felicity Brown; zingy yellows and hot pinks from Olivia Rubin; even a yellow summer jumper from Studio Nicholson!

Studio Nicholson SS12 (image courtesy of syuhari.com)

Not forgetting the prettiest summer dresses in bloom from borne and Kelly Love….

borne SS12

We want to shrug off our forlorn Winter blacks and greys and emerge as shimmering, effervescent new girl butterflies. Every day we want to be a new rainbow.

Olivia Rubin SS12

We have never loved our bright young things’ bright creations more….

And there’s tomorrow’s deliveries to look forward to too!

When someone says to me “London Fashion Week” three things go through my head. The first is the visceral thought of the pain of over a hundred show requests. The second is the dread of how sparse my wardrobe is and how the h-e-double-hockey-sticks am I going to create five different outfits without looking like an absolute plebe. The third thing is something I can’t describe, but it makes me feel fairly giddy and nauseous at the same time. Go figure.

Fashion week is a figurative pain in my rear end. Early mornings, late nights, inflated egos, seeing that person you can’t tolerate, having serious outfit envy – it all adds up to me saying “I hate fashion week” over and over until my assistant has decided she’s sick of me. And yet (and maybe this is the masochist I didn’t know I had in me) – I bloody love it. London Fashion Week tends to be the smallest week. For those of us based in London, we attend the shows from the first day of five. For the international set, the first day begins whenever the big players like Mulberry are on the field, and ends two days later. But for five glorious days twice a year, you get to see the clothes that people will be coveting in six months’ time – and you get to see them first, even if you’re not physically at the show itself.

Peter Pilotto AW12 (image courtesy of fashioneditoratlarge)

For me, London has rightfully earned its place as a fashion capital. Between our heritage brands like Burberry, Mulberry, Paul Smith and Pringle of Scotland, we’ve got our upstarts which make fashion-fanatics go hysterical each season – Peter Pilotto, Mary Katrantzou, J.W. Anderson (who’s available on YBD, wink wink, nudge nudge) – all are coveted by the best and stylish. Between the classic, elegant styles courtesy of Mulberry’s Emma Hill to the electro-cool graphics of the Peter Pilotto boys Christopher De Vos and Peter Pilotto, London is a hub for creative talent. And whether or not you get to go to one of those shows, you know that they’ll create something so beautiful, you’ll want everything right this second. No, not in six months. Now. As in, I’m ripping those trousers off of that model’s skinny legs and putting them on myself, now.

J.W.Anderson AW12 courtesy of catwalking.com

Sorry. Got a little carried away.

Obviously, there’s the downside of not getting in to a show, or not receiving a ticket to a show you sat at last season. But that’s all politics, and perseverance is a must. And even if you know you’ll never receive an invitation to that Burberry show, you’ll still appreciate, review, and buy. That’s what makes London Fashion Week such a key event. As an editor, you’re constantly editing the collection you see down to key pieces, key looks. What will look good with that Burberry trench? What about that David Koma dress? Is it possible to wear that Katrantzou dress without getting weird looks on the Tube? But at the end of the day, you’re telling people what you saw. You are the most important person to the people who didn’t see that show. It is your duty to relay the information to them.

There is nothing quite like London during fashion week. And it all emanates from Somerset House. The powerful aura of the entire industry’s most powerful people in one place. It is intimidating – one second, you’re chatting with a stylist you’ve met, and the next you’re leaving a show standing next to one of British ELLE’s top editors. One second, you’re saying goodbye to a colleague, and the next you’re face to face with the editor-in-chief of British Vogue. But then you remember they’re here for the same reason as you – to do a job.

At the end of day – or rather, week – you may be exhausted, you may have not eaten for three days, and you may need to go to a podiatrist to fix that broken toe from having your heels get caught in a cobblestone, but in the end it’s all worth it when you’re in that show, watching the pristinely dressed models walk down the catwalk.

London Fashion Week, as always, you were a work of art. See you in six months…

Colin Dawidziuk is the European Fashion Editor for KENTON Magazine

We are often heard waxing lyrical about emerging young British designers. In the midst of AW12 London Fashion Week we are delighted to confirm that we remain blown away by the length, breadth and depth of this country’s fashion offering.

Making it through to any aspect of Fashion Week is a huge achievement and must seem nigh on impossible for many emerging designers just leaving our brilliant fashion schools. “What are you/they looking for?” “How do we go about it?” are the questions we get asked on a daily basis: “How do we take our designs and make them receive serious consideration out there in the business world ?”

Well, we’ve recently launched a brand new label on youngbritishdesigners.com. A label that has arrived with the impact of a meteorite yet has months and years of serious planning intent in its evolution.

We first came face to face with MASC at Vauxhall Fashion Scout in September of last year.

Even across the crowded Freemason’s Hall MASC quietly called out to us. It had a studied presence all of its own. As we moved closer there was a strength in its colour palette, its texture, its drape that created a true entity, an unquestionable identity.

And when we were finally up close and personal it was obvious that this was already a brand in its own right. Not the bare bones of a great idea, not a collection with one or two standout pieces, not a “one to keep an eye on”.

A brand stands for something. It has a consistency and a strength of purpose. It has an intent and a confidence in itself. It creates an emotional link with the beholder who understands what this brand is about and what it means to them.

MASC had put infinite thought into the birth of their label. From the name, to the logo, to the brand ethos, to the type of person they were aiming at, to the wonderfully evocative launch photography and last but not least, the accessible pricing.

But even more than this they had created a joined up collection that could have come from no other designer. A unique collection with a striking design aesthetic and using sumptuous materials. All made in England.

And for a buyer the look books were at once exquisite and easy. Every last detail had been thought through, both on and off line. Sounds simple but sometimes it’s actually hard to buy if you aren’t handed the right tools.

We had no hesitation in buying MASC. And we were not on our own. This brand new name got themselves a window in Selfridges, Oxford Street as part of the department store’s ‘Bright Young Things’ initiative, as well as a clutch of enthusiastic international stockists.

The names behind MASC are Duncan Shaw and and Billy Yick. Both studied at Nottingham Trent, graduating in 2007. After they’d finished, Duncan took up an offer to study at the Institut Francais de la Mode in Paris- the only British graduate in the prestigious scheme. Billy followed him there. Duncan points out that this time in Paris still has a major influence upon their work. The pair work calmly and seamlessly together, entirely in sync with each other’s creative vision; they even describe how they work on the same mannequin, taking one half each and eventually blending their two creations into a MASC piece.

MASC was born from the idea of equipping the human form with an armoured elegance and chic minimalism. The label will continue to  introduce womenswear collections that translate notions of concealment, mystery and the sensation of being ‘masked’ into draped and structured silhouettes. There is a brand synergy and a long term vision against which creativity can flourish within a framework of true consistency.

The debut collection consists of dresses and separates that feature extraordinary cutting techniques, luxurious fabrics and expressive drape. Influenced by Japanese simplicity, the form focused pieces offer geometric panelling, asymmetric hems and unorthodox silhouettes. When we opened our delivery we couldn’t have been more delighted with the perfection we found therein. In fact we have gone on record to say that the Side Wing Pencil Dress is amongst the most beautifully cut pieces we have ever encountered.

This week we met with the AW12 collection from Duncan and Billy. The brand is evolving but the brand remains resolutely of itself.

MASC, aged less than one year old, has an integrity, a gravitas and a creative dynamism that should serve as a masterclass for designers throughout the industry. In our book MASC really do show ‘how to do it’.

The MASC debut collection is online now at www.youngbritishdesigners.com.

So, it’s heading our way really quickly. London Fashion Week.

The very best Fashion Week of them all in my humble opinion. Alive, buzzing, risk-taking, reverberating, fresh and all with an audacious wink of its eye.

Yet for all of the excitement it is accompanied by a shameful wrenching of the very guts of me…What to wear. Nay, how to walk into a forum full of exceedingly young, terribly beautiful girls, all dressed to kill, all dazzling. When I feel I am just an older, curvier, mostly invisible woman.

Yet, when I am there, after all of the agonising, I walk into the courtyard at Somerset House and my anguish is gone in a microsecond. I cannot help but rejoice in the colour and beauty of the fashion parade. At both young and old, rake thin and voluptuous forms, male, female and the odd canine. At the fun, the vibrancy and the whole of British fashion united within a swarming sea of clashing, seamless individuality.

Paloma Group (courtesy of MyDaily.co.uk)

At the brightest lipsticks, the perkiest headwear, the longest legs in heels that defy anything but fash wisdom. At life being lived in maybe its most superficial, yet simultaneously its most joyful visual manifestation.

And everyone is beautiful. My forever favourite has to be the most elegant elderly lady ever who glides in slow motion through the parting crowds wearing a peacock feather trilby and purple lips.

Image courtsey of Jill Adams (Next Blog)

So, why do I worry about what to wear? Probably because it’s a kind of exquisite agony. Probably because we females are programmed that way (I hear you, men too!).  And let’s face it I shouldn’t worry one bit because I am in the extremely privileged position of being able to select my outfits from the kind of people who make London Fashion Week so Cool Britannia: Young British Designers.

Eudon Choi SS12 (image courtesy of Vauxhall Fashion Scout)

Because when I wear designs from the best of emerging British fashion I know that I am being as uniquely me as it’s possible to be. And that even with my great age and great curves I glow with the certain knowledge that I’m doing it my way and with YBD pride and a grin.

You see, even when I’m eighty with white hair and a violent violet mouth I defy anyone to stop me wearing the newest, bravest, freshest fashion.

So, if you’re in turmoil over what to wear this February the 17th just wear what makes you smile. You’ll look beautiful.

My Mum is fond of telling the story of when I was a little girl. The one where all the other girls loved pretty dolls and I only ever wanted toy cars. And to climb trees. And to have terribly big adventures.

I still love cars (and now get to drive them- too fast probably) and I still lust after owning the highest of high tree house. One where I can pull the rope ladder up after me and leave the world behind (until I get hungry anyway).

And I’m wondering if this is where it all started, my love for things tough. The Parka rather than the Princess Coat. The Biker Boots as opposed to the Mary Janes. The Little Lacey Dress, yes, but worn with my Doc Martens.

For me there’s nothing more appealing than a bit of girliness worn with big tough boy’ness. Which is probably why I love beyond measure these ‘tough love’ items from Young British Designers.

First up? The Tatum Boy Boots from Lama Peach. All scuffed and tough’ed and ridged and soft and laced. Brand new yet adored and abused already. I wear these with leggings and butter-cream frayed chiffon skirt and big black knit. Marvelous.

Then there’s the Daisy Biker Jacket from those ‘Hide Heroines’ over at Swagga & Soul. This little jacket is genius. It has all of the essential visual Biker Jacket boy cues yet is shrunken of sleeve and length to emphasise your innate girliness. So cool whether worn with little dress or poker jeans and heels. It’s that all powerful juxtaposition of male/female played out in leather this time.

And speaking of leather let’s not forget the all-powerful Eudon Choi equestrian inspired cuff. There’s definitely something S&M about this piece. Something about wrapping the delicate female wrist in a vice grip of finest leather.

Few male designers do the whole boy girl thing as well as J.W Anderson. His irreverent take on fashion leads to girls dressed as boys dressed as girls. This boy trouser suit couldn’t fail to make a girl look more feminine.

And to top it all how about a big red messenger bag from Issi? Created from recycled butch fire hose used by macho firefighters in hours of need. Recycled into a glorious ‘carry your life in it’ bag with a vibrant silk volcano screen print within. Its size and beautiful functionality only serves to draw attention to your female form teetering behind it.

I never wanted to be a boy. Just to beg, borrow and steal boy stuff. And wear it. My way. My Mum still doesn’t get it but I reckon by now she has learned to live with it.

Today #TheMagicDress arrives at Young British Designers.

This is a body-con dress with a difference. Designed by a young man who really understands women’s bodies.

Yan To is somewhat of an enigma. He works out of sight and largely alone in the Leicestershire countryside. Self taught this designer is propelled by instinct and gut feel. He rarely sketches, preferring to create on the mannequin or the female form. He juxtaposes creative pragmatism with no holds barred innovation and the result is fashion dynamite:

“I want to create new things. There is no point merely designing pretty dresses as there are hundreds of people doing this and many will be better than I am.”

The idea of designing a new body-con dress, one which truly enhanced a woman’s figure became an overriding obsession. Yan To could see some major problems with the ways in which body-con dresses are produced. The current thinking is to create compression garments or undergarments in order to sculpt the figure. Bandage dresses look amazing on women with a perfect figure but do they really work on those who have not, or do they just emphasise what you are trying to hide? Compression underwear is more successful but is it sexy? This lead to Yan To’s work with elastics. The premise is quite simple. A textured surface is better at hiding lumps and bumps than a smooth surface. Yan To’s elastic dresses therefore work in two ways. Firstly the inner layer of elastic sculpts the body into a slimmer shape. The outer layers of elastic create a texture which informs the silhouette. Although the actual body outline has not changed significantly, the effect of the textured surface gives the impression that the body underneath is slimmer than it actually is.

Each elastic dress is created by hand and can take up to three days as the elastics have to be positioned organically. This gives a couture effect solution to an age old problem. All this without the need for any help from underwear.

The result is nothing short of magic. The dress sculpts, moulds and yet softens the slimmer silhouette. Curves are at once accentuated and supported. This is a feat of fashion engineering fit for real women everywhere sizes 6-16.

As part of British Vogue’s Online Fashion week (#OFW) Young British Designers and Yan To will create #TheMagicDress for one lucky winner. The dress will be made bespoke to your actual body. How utterly indulgent is that.  Just tell us on Twitter (@YBDfashion) or Facebook or on www.youngbritishdesigners.com what you’d love #TheMagicDress to do for you in 140 characters or less.

After all, we all need a magic dress sometimes.

Not just a pretty dress, not just a sexy dress but a dress that “works”. Works with your body to make your body, well, work.

Looking back there have been a number of truly iconic dresses during the last fifty years or so.

Audrey Hepburn’s sublime floor length Givenchy in ‘Breakfast at Tiffany’s”. Complete with longest black satin gloves and cigarette holder.

Marilyn Monroe in THAT white halter neck dress By William Travilla. Never before had pleats been so powerful.

And not forgetting Liz Hurley in the show-stopping Versace ‘safety pin’ dress.

But there have also been the dresses that have become outright legends in their own right whether worn by celebrities or the woman in the street: Diane Von Furstenberg’s Time Machine wrap-dress. Introduced in 1973 and still going strong. Why? Because it works. It enhances every woman’s shape. Gives every woman a great outline and makes her step out with confidence and a self assuredness that few other garments are able to deliver.

In 1989 Hervé Léger introduced one of the very first, still utterly famous, “body-con” dresses. The “Bandage Dress” was a sheath-like frock that resembled a series of elasticated bandages worn wrapped around the torso. It remains much loved by the glitterati and the fashion elite alike. It frequently makes its appearance on red carpets or as a dazzling and very public “two finger gesture” to an ex.

Then in the early 2000′s Roland Mouret shot to glory with his much copied and much lauded “Galaxy Dress”. The “Galaxy Dress” was said to flatter every female form from a size 6-16. Its secret was a lining created from ‘Powerflex’, a tough, stretch fabric used to make underwear in the 1950′s. This secret ‘inner tube’ helped create the nipped in waist and lifted boobs-n-bum that has been sought after since fashion, and women, began. Such was the body defining power of ‘The Galaxy Dress’ that women were said to queue all through the night to get their hands on one.

‘The Galaxy Dress’ is newly available all over again this year. Priced at just £1450.

All iconic. All totally memorable and dazzling in their own right.

Now, let us tell you about a new contender for the legendary dress crown.

#The Magic Dress appeared in our Young British Designers studio just a couple of months ago. It was carried in by a young designer who carried himself with much aplomb. He was fiercely protective over his brand and his potential stockists (having been snapped up by Harrods). He knew he had something special. He wanted to see if we had the vision to think so too.

We were bowled over.

This wasn’t just a dress. This was a work of meticulously engineered beauty.

My own curvy size 12 physique cried out for it, longed to be held within it, reassuringly being as perfect as I can be.

The designer is Yan To.

Yan To has created something that goes beyond any other “body-con” dress out there. Something that not only “controls and glorifies” the female form but also texturises and disguises our least favourite areas.The result is stunning. The result is #TheMagicDress. On sale at Young British Designers from the 5th December.

In our next post we’ll bring you the full details and also news on how you can win this dress, bespoke to your body, to your individual taste, as part of British Vogue’s Online Fashion Week.

More soon!

“The grey sea and the long black land;

And the yellow half-moon large and low;

And the startled little waves that leap

In fiery ringlets from their sleep..”

Imagine the poetry of Robert Browning ‘written’ on your heart.

Imagine carrying vintage music scores with you wherever you go.

Imagine travelling wearing maps from vintage atlases.

Imagine your passion embodied in jewellery to take with you each and every day.

This is why we fell in love with Comfort Station.

Old music books, map books and poetry books are sliced, layered and recreated within pendants.

Not in a twee way either. These pendants are beautifully engineered and have an industrial like functionality that juxtaposes delightfully with the utter romance of them.

Look closely at the tags on both the pendants and the exquisitely articulated bracelets. They carry the exact co ordinates for “Love”, a town in the Bahamas or “Hope”, a town in Devon.

This is a close up and personal brand with its own unique story.

Comfort Station is a lady called Amy Anderson whose journey through Fine Art, sculpture, photography , video and a sought after stall on Portobello Market has led her to her own studio in East London and a loyal and passionate following.

If music, maps or muse are your passion or the passion of someone you love then this is this season’s perfect and most unique gift.

I’d like the poetry pendant. Please.

What better month to introduce you to a wonderfully English and extremely talented young jewellery designer.

Meet Molly Perrin.

Molly grew up in London and Norfolk and studied her BA in metalwork and jewellery design at Farnham University for the Creative Arts in Surrey. In September of this year she began the Goldsmithing, Silversmithing, Metalwork and Jewellery MA at the Royal College of Art.

Molly’s inspirations are eccentric, esoteric and ever so English. She admits to a passion for spying on old houses, rummaging for finds at antique or flea markets, charity shops and auction houses: “especially if there’s a proper tea room nearby!”

It was this English tradition of loving the quirkiness of the past that really caught our eye with Molly’s jewellery. In particular her “Stiff Upper Lip” collection. Molly explains its genesis:

“The moustache piece came from me imagining the peculiarly British people that may have lived in the houses my inspiration came from ‐ for example the ‘Stiff Upper Lip’ character. The form is based on the ‘moustache guards’ dandies used to protect their carefully coiffed moustaches from the many dainty teacups full of tea they would drink each day.”

We loved the idea of wearing a moustache about our neck, the form itself is quite organic albeit coiffed, pretty in a masculine perverse kind of way and sort of sexy with a smile.

Which one is your favourite?

And for every ‘Stiff Upper Lip’ bought during November we will donate £10 to the Movember charity for Men’s Health, specifically Prostate Cancer.

Occasionally we happen upon a young designer who has taken the less conventional path to finding her art. Someone who’s chosen to turn her ordered world upside down in pursuit of a creative dream, a life more fulfilled.

Meet the lovely Louise Dungate. Louise had a glittering career as an up and coming creative in the advertising business. The job was high pressure  and high stress and to help herself (along with her colleagues) to relax Louise joined an after hours Knit Club. Knitting was something that Louise had always been enthralled by, from the early days of her childhood, from time spent with her Gran and Aunty (both avid knitters) and from her own early interaction with the big pointy needles.

Louise soon found herself enjoying the Knit Club so much that she carried on knitting voraciously out of hours. Friends and family quickly seized upon her ensuing produce and the orders started coming. So much so that Louise had to make the decision to completely change direction and pursue this new, albeit first, love.

Louise tells the stories of how both her grandmother Nancy and her great aunt Betty learnt to knit at school, at the age of 4. She loves the tales of how they would knit socks for the soldiers, and on Fridays at school they would have to bring something in from home to mend. Often it would be a holey jumper, belonging to Louise’s great grandfather.

We met Louise soon after she’d made this momentous move and were bowled over by her risk taking, her sense of adventure, fun and “life’s too short not to do what you love” mentality. Not only this but Louise creates the most wonderful knits with those busy, clever fingers. Wrap yourself in one of her pieces and feel at once embraced and all aglow.

Louise strongly believes in ethical and eco-friendly fashion. She knits with natural yarns, and uses recycled materials/packaging wherever possible.

Her chosen quote for her brand ethos emanates from Roald Dahl:

One year old.

One year since we launched our “why are you doing that dot com”.

“Why are you taking a risk on young designers?”

“They’ll let you down; they’ll deliver late; they’ll disappear with your money.”

“People want brands they know, established names.”

They spoke tosh.

And we just carried on regardless. We believed in them you see. In their bright, unstoppable talent. In their taking risks, daring to be different. In their hard work, their sheer determination, their joy. In their creation of the “take your breath away” unique.

And in them doing it here. In Great Britain.

It’s London Fashion Week next week. Many of our designers will be there. Some for the very first time. Strutting their marvellous stuff and we will be so very proud of them.

And so very lucky to be a part of their journey.

Roll on year two.

Young British Designers. We love you.

People are shivering. Cardies are being pulled from wardrobes again. There’s a sense of having been cheated out of a long Indian Summer. Of having missed out on any Summer at all.

Mornings are started by standing in a confused, blank faced huddle in front of an open wardrobe that seems to be parading racer back vests and denim shorts. And cardies. They stayed all season long.

But what did we wear when it wasn’t quite Summer? What did we wear last Autumn? Are sandals still okay to wear or can we give in and reach for the beloved ankle boots, first with bare legs and then with leggings, opaques, long socks?

When, is the real question, when is it time to give up and admit Summer is done and it’s now time for the ‘T’ word?

I personally love the ‘T’ word. The transitional wardrobe is more fun, more creative and more forgiving. A look is so much more inspiring when you can add different layers, textures, accessories and colour ways. That’s not to say a Summer vibe is less gorgeous, just simpler in its manifestation (if it’s sunny anyway). And let’s face it, it’s a look that always looks better on young, evenly toned, golden skin.

As a devotee of the jacket I am in raptures at being able to reach for this season’s smart but easy boy blazer, for the leather jacket I will live and love in until it softens, cracks and tells our story, for the gilet that is light as a cloud and yet styled with real catwalk knowhow.

(J.W.Anderson AW11)

I long for the varied splendour of sleeves and necklines again. For batwings and rubber collars, for draped and elbow cosseting. For peeping out below and above knitwear.

And hemlines. Oh my, how excited is a person allowed to be at the thought of not only a mini and a maxi but now a midi too? How lucky is this generation where we can and do demand it all. And it all works. All lengths. All occasions. But my favourite for Autumn is most definitely the midi. It looks wonderfully fresh and unexpected yet so perfectly in tune. And so perfect for transitional legs. For the pause between tan and tights.

(Ada Zanditon AW11)

And see through. Transparent, gauzy, semi sheer. For most of us this look works (or we are only brave enough for it to work) if we layer it. Again, the transitional wardrobe allows us to do just that. Sheer skirts with leggings, sheer tops beneath jackets or lightest knits. Sheer vests over maxi dresses.

(Gallery 4 AW11)

Legwear becomes a real possibility again. Jeans no longer feel too heavy, trousers are ankle grazing, achingly cool worn with new season heels. A proper trouser suit feels like a done deal.

(Aloe AW11)

Transitional dressing is good. Transitional dressing is all about being allowed to start playing at being dressed up again.

I’m starting tomorrow.*

(*Terms and conditions apply: not if the sun shines)

Sling it all on, and you’ve got 2011 Winter fashion sorted. Sling it all on from Young British Designers, you’ve blitzed it in a totally original way. The kind of way that’s going to get you noticed this winter, that’s going to have your friends pining and stealing from your wardrobe. The same way that will show you’re bang on trend, but dare to be different.

To sum it up, fashion for Autumn Winter 2011 is spiralling in almost every direction. Whether you like to dress prettily with mittens on your manicured fingers, or you’re more into scuffing your shoes up the wall before you shove them on with your ripped skinnies, the colder months are all about exploring every possible option, and we’re running with that spirit too.

For Autumn Winter we’ve got at least 12 new talents coming your way, so here’s the low down on each and every one of them.

Fanny And Jessy

For the tougher aggressive ones of you out there, fetishism and dominatrix styles are storming forward next season, where it wouldn’t be frowned upon to wear leather straps, buckles and corsets pressed against your chest in public. Newcomers Fanny and Jessy rock this world, bearing zips, slashes and gothic tones on bomber jackets, waxed up skirts and cow’s head knits.

Stomping on from that one in heavy duty Bovver boots is Lama Peach. With 60’s Mod becoming one of the biggest trends of the season, these boots are a must have. Like Doc Martens? You’ll love these. Fancy yourself as the new Agyness Deyn? Team the boots with Cooperative Designs mohair layer maxi (and a crop top, if you’re brave enough), and you’ll have nailed her style in a totally unique way.

Lama Peach

For the days that are not so ‘rain’ but more about ‘winter chills’, it’s important to stay toasty warm in what you wear. Like the idea of layering, but want something with a smarter, more classical take on things? Grab yourself some Gallery 4. Inspired by vintage 1920’s men’s tailoring, their  will instantly cover the androgyny style for you, and keep the cold winds out with glitter vests, leggings, jumpers and chiffon maxi skirt too. If you want to soften it up, they have the most angelically pleated dresses too.

Gallery 4

Back to being really British, oversized snug jumpers and heritage classicism are big for Winter 11. You know that cringe worthy moment in Bridget Jones where Darcy’s wearing a reindeer jumper from Mummy? Embrace it now; jumpers are bigger and better than ever. Worried about looking ten years old again? Shop Obscure Couture, they add spikes and studs. Or team your big pull over with wrists covered in Maria Lau heavy-duty cuffs and armbands; it’ll rock it up a little.

Obscure Couture

But maybe you’re proud to sit back and sip on mulled wine in the world’s hugest jumper, elegantly warm and looking rather cute. If you are, head back to Cooperative Designs and grab one of their oversized knits, and then pop a Comfort Station pendant round your neck, it would look just beautiful. A Two Weeks net leather skirt would really set it off though.

But for the real English Rose, we welcome you to Aloë, where there’s the most sensational range of soft silk gowns, 1930’s ‘Francais’ inspired of course.

Aloe

As beautiful as they are, they won’t keep you all that warm by themselves, so pair with a Louise Dungate scarf or snood, the Godfather especially (which is so long it pretty much equates to wrapping a blanket around you, we just love it) and then you’ve not only made sure you look cool, you’ve protected yourself from future chill blains ever developing.

Aksha Fernandez

Finally, a little something for the evening? Step out in a pair of Aksha Fernandez floral ankle boots alongside a clashing print tee, and you’ll have mastered a handful of different styles in a truly feminine way. Want to really stand out that night? Joanne Stoker prides her footwear on its architectural form, creating shoes that are sure to steal the show. If you haven’t already that is.

So in a roundabout way, that’s the next 6 months of Young British Designer’s fashion covered for you, quite literally, from head to toe.

Sitting here writing about the new season’s collection from Young British Designers. Our third season and we think our best to date. By far.

Of course when we say ‘our best’ we mean our brilliant designers’ best.

There’s a whole new line up joining our existing names. There are more shoe designers than ever before including handmade vintage boots by Lama Peach, stunning heels by Joanne Stoker and the embellished delights from Aksha Fernandez. There’s riotous knitwear from the girls at Cooperative Designs, there’s cool as f**k clothing from Fanny and Jessy, Obscure Couture and Two Weeks. There’s lots of jewellery to beguile and adore from the likes of Comfort Station and some -not for long- unheard of new designers. There’s gorgeous knit accessories from the talented fingers of Louise Dungate and…Oh, there’s so much more than this.

Take a quick sneak peak at what’s in store (or will be during August and September!)

Two Weeks

Comfort Station

Cooperative Designs

Joanne Stoker

Louise Dungate

Fanny and Jessy

And that’s just the start.

P.S Did we mention menswear from Simeon Farrar?

They’re ours.

For a start.

They’ve often been educated here, trained here, inspired here and have started out on the long and tough road to being a designer right here in the UK.

They’ve been bold and brave and followed what they’ve believed in. They’ve shrugged off glamour and shrugged on another layer in their East London studio. They have clawed together funds from family, friends and other 9-5 jobs they do whilst producing their first samples 5-5. They’ve paraded their wares tirelessly to PR’s, to anyone who may know anyone, to Twitter, to FaceBook, to boutiques, to buyers, to mates down the pub or in the college canteen.

We hear from them each and every day. We try to respond to each and every designer who contacts us. It’s not easy when we’re such a small business but that’s what we’re here for. Not all are right for us. We are not right for all. Some we sell hard and fast and that is so gratifying to see, such a thrill. Some are slow burn, people circle them, like them, rub up against them and then pounce.

And when we do sell a single item from a brand new designer it matters. It really, really matters. It makes real and tangible a dream that every designer has: to see their designs being worn by real people, being loved, being desired. It enables the dream to continue; it makes possible the creation of the next season’s collection.

And when someone buys a piece from a young British designer then they’re choosing the road less well travelled but one that is such a surprising and unique route. One that often leads to the most glorious views. Each piece is made in tiny numbers and often started and finished by hand. Each piece can be worn in the sure and certain knowledge that it is “yours”, that it is part or all of an individual look that you have quite deliberately created. With excitement and joy.

That wherever you go people will stare and some will dare ask: “Where did you get that?”

And do you know what else happens when you buy a Young British Designer creation?

They smile.

P.S And right now you get to smile even more because it’s Sale time.

Outside the rain begins. And it may never end….

But here I sit dressed in ‘Draw In Light’. And it’s the equivalent of a day spent breathing in endless seas and skies.

The ethos behind the label is: “Everything is unique”. And each and every piece is just that. A work of art in its own right. Colours bleed, water is dropped on the screen during production, pieces are hand painted and even burnt with fragile, carcass creating care.

Deserts, skies, dawns and sunrise, grey rain blurring into the start of the shadowed horizon. Blue seas and waves refracting and reflecting light. All of this captured in a maxi dress, a T-shirt, a skirt…

And so very easy to wear too. Fluid, skimming, caressing.

Today I am wearing the weather.

In all of its glorious manifestations.

Today I am wearing the design brilliance that is Draw In Light.

Created by one of our newest and oh so talented jewellery designers: LeiVanKash.

This ring simply sings of Summer. Lazy days where the heat haze leaves you stupefied with languid delight. Drifting into long Summer evenings with ice clinking in tall glasses and skin that glows with soaked up light and warmth.

Perhaps a maxi dress by Simeon Farrar or Partimi to trail through sand or whispering grasses. Worn with strappy gladiators by Bionda Castana or Atalanta Weller…

And this ring. In Rose Gold or Gold Gold. A simply beautiful single rose to wrap about a finger and curve its leaf around another. Gorgeous to wear. Sensual, natural, easy and a delight to behold. This ring has all the signs of becoming an “it” ring. Little wonder it’s a favourite of Olivia Palermo.

And now ours too.

The LeiVanKash Rose Ring. Available now.

£250 at Young British Designers.

A fairy tale dress. A dress made of clouds. A dress that floats and drapes and glows about you.

A dress to take your breath away. And everyone else’s.

Think of a dream dress.

This is it.

The Cloud Nine Dress from Z-Mode