Royalty reigned supreme at Simone Rocha's SS19 show at London Fashion Week

Rocha bought a dash of decadence to London Fashion Week 
Rex
Emma McCarthy17 September 2018

The London Fashion Week stage is home to two distinct groups of established designers.

There is the globally renowned talents, known as such because they’ve carved businesses for themselves out of instantly recognisable aesthetics. And then there’s the big budget brands in possession of household names that generate noise irrespective of what the clothes they choose to unveil on the catwalk. Simone Rocha, who staged her latest showcase last night, is a perfect ambassador for the former.

Not one to follow trends, the Central Saint Martin’s alumni unveiled a collection brimming with ladylike grandeur which served to remind the fashion world of her USP.

Held in the decadent surroundings of Lancaster House, which has also served as the setting for BBC drama The Crown, the capital’s queen of fantastical clothes fit for fashion royalty reigned supreme for another season.

Simone Rocha's Spring/Summer 2019 show
Rex Features

Wallpaper brocade evening jackets, taffeta puff-ball dresses and intricately embroidered gowns were among the signatures to take to the catwalk, along with pearl-encrusted collars and veiled bonnets.

This season, these were joined by silk dresses depicting renaissance portraiture in a painterly motif which was also embroidered onto white cotton petticoat skirts, while feather trimmed slippers were built to be admired - and worn indoors - only.

But while Rocha’s collections hark back to an era of banqueting halls and society balls, this was no period drama. Instead, the clothes on offer retained a sense of youthful modernity - if not directly in their aesthetic, then in their ability to adapt to a contemporary wardrobe. Puff-sleeve outerwear, for example, could be defined as spectacular trench coats, while her crystal chandelier earrings are capable of appealing to even the jeans-and-t-shirt-wearing fashion fan.

London Fashion Week SS19: Front Row

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Of course for Rocha, 32, whose father is the esteemed British designer John Rocha, the London Fashion Week catwalk is a comfortable place to be. It is from a position of confidence that her label has flourished. With stores on both sides of the Atlantic and stockist across the globe, Rocha is ahead of her game. Certainly she’s succeeding where a designer without a clear cut vision may have failed by always marching to the beat of her own drum.

As a result, the clothes on the catwalk today - and in-stores for Simone Rocha customers for next season - are very much indicative of a designer who is at ease with sticking to what she does best.

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