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Top SS22 trends from London Fashion Week

From checks to patchwork to summer knits and more, here is a selection of our favourite trends from a short and sweet gender-neutral fashion week this June.

Bethany Williams, Image Courtesy of Jan Solberg

After a year dominated by loungewear and tracksuit bottoms, fashion is showing signs of awakening from its prolonged trends hibernation. With the end of lockdowns round the corner, it’s a moment for reinvigoration of the fashionscape. London’s emerging designers are always worthy of close scrutiny, reflecting the city’s diverse and multi-faceted energy.

With a scaled-down schedule that merged both menswear and womenswear collections, London Fashion Week included some deeply personal collections that reflected on heritage, nature and narrative in a fully digital event running from June 12 to 14. 

From high-impact prints to new ideas for summer knitwear, here’s our pick of the new ideas of Spring/Summer 2022. And there’s more to come at another London Fashion Week from  September 17 to 21, which is likely to include a greater selection of real-life shows.

Checkerboard

Chess has never been sexier. Instagram users will be familiar with checkerboard prints that have been cropping up across Insta feeds – they’re hard to miss. Initially popularised back in the 1970s, the eye-popping print resurfaced this year (partly thanks to Netflix’s The Queen’s Gambit), showing that fashion’s love affair with checkerboard print is back big time. Romance-meets-punk label Preen by Thornton Bregazzi presented black and white checkerboard wrap skirts alongside matching belts. Ahluwalia constructed large checkerboard designs using deadstock fabrics for suits, midi dresses and shorts – proving it’s hip to be square.

Preen by Thornton Bregazzi, Image Courtesy of Preen

Men’s Bags 

Man bags are back. Thanks to the likes of Harry Styles and Jaden Smith, they have evolved from geek to chic. This time round, it’s mini men’s bags that are the standout option. Austrian fashion house Published By showcased a sleek array of handbags inspired by architecture and modern art. The brand merges 3D modeling with sculptural craftsmanship to create genderless accessories. Futuristic teardrop silhouettes in shades of silver, charcoal and viridian invite a more playful approach to men’s accessories. As gender boundaries continue to blur in fashion, handbags become more accessible to all. Time to ditch the trad briefcase and experiment with new shapes and colours.

Sleeveless Shirts 

The tank top made a comeback just in time for 2021 Zoom calls. Now it’s smarter, richer, more-refined counterpart – the sleeveless shirt – is taking centre stage. Set within a modernist, botanical labyrinth on the outskirts of London, the show from Qasimi celebrated the art of Islamic architecture and precision tailoring for SS22. Charcoal button-down shirts were cloaked underneath cargo net shawls, while collars were tightly fastened and adorned with tarbousha tassels.

Opting for a more rough-and-ready approach, JORDANLUCA showed reconstructed silhouettes and frayed hems, displayed in a quintessentially British scrapyard, accompanied by a soundtrack from Manchester drill artist Blackhaine. Shirt buttons were splayed open to reveal models’ ripped torsos or fishnet vests, plus plenty of flowing skirts and chunky clogs. This show paid homage to a progressive vision of virility and manhood. We’re here for it.

Words by Bethanie Ryder

JORDANLUCA, Image Courtesy of Jackson Bowley

Waistcoats

A relaxed but distinctive theme for next summer, waistcoats were best at Nicholas Daley, reimagining a piece typically associated with traditional tailoring. It feels like a natural follow-on from the sweater vest trend – think of it as an elevated version of a knitted vest. For everyday dressing, this piece works its way into a wardrobe easily. There’s an effortlessness to it, but still cool – a touch supermodel off-duty.

With opportunities to either layer or simply throw on, there’s a real versatility in how to style this piece. Paired with jeans and some statement sunglasses, instantly you’re Julia Roberts in the 1990s. Notting Hill anyone?

Words by George Clark

Nicholas Daley, Image Courtesy of Piczo

Summer Knits 

Slouchy, sheer, cabled or crochet – an assortment of luxury knitwear appeared on the runways and in virtual displays. Although heatwaves and knitwear seem an unlikely combination, they make for a great pairing post-lockdown, aiding the transition from night in to night out. Robyn Lynch, with support from outdoor brand Columbia, layered neutral-coloured cable knit sweater vests over practical athletic shapes to create a haute hiker collection. With colours ranging from burnt orange to sage green, the designer proved practicality doesn’t have to be dull or predictable. Bethany Williams went for bright bold designs on her knitwear. Primary coloured patchwork prints celebrated family, friends and unity as she debuted her kidswear range and matching graphic jackets for dogs.

Words by Rosie Davenport

Robyn Lynch, Image Courtesy of Philip White

Utilitarian 

A post-pandemic hankering for practicality was evident in utilitarian ready-for-anything garb – consisting of zip-locks, hidden pockets, and water-resistant cover-ups. Mayyaagayeva’s Burning Wonderland collection is solely dedicated to sustainable garments that can be reused for different occasions. Multi-purpose tailoring with pinstriped open shoulder seams, military boots and harnesses epitomises the desire for functional fashion. For their final collection film, the up-and-coming designers from University of Westminster exhibited slow-mo scenes of asymmetric puffers and mesh capped hoods in garish colours.

Words by Isobel Atkinson

Patchwork 

Once hippie, now high fashion. Eclectic patchworks composed of unlikely textures and colours are unmissable for SS22. Designers such as Ahluwalia, Per Götesson and Reuben Selby are disrupting throwaway culture by repurposing fabric scraps, deadstock and discarded clothing to create geometric designs with a homespun feel. Loose-fitting jackets that resemble jigsaws, cut-and-pasted shirts curated from a broad colour palette, and patched jeans all reflect our collective need to play, while nurturing sustainable techniques. No two pieces are the same, made even more so with touches of hand painting, adding an individualistic touch of intimacy.

Words by Rose Dodd

Ahluwalia, Image Courtesy of Ahluwalia

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