Stevie Sims (daughter of David Sims and Luella Bartley), Sofia Testino (daughter of Art Partner founder Giovanni Testino) and Ella Richards (granddaughter of Keith Richards and Anita Pallenberg) all walked – nepo baby discourse be damned – as the The closing look was worn by blue-blooded beauty editor Tish Weinstock. Consani of course also came along elsewhere in the line-up Fashion cover star Precious Lee and non-binary model and poet Kai-Isaiah Jamal. For Ives, the casting reflected his vision of what high society looks like today, and the (relative, at least) democracy of who you might encounter in those spaces in London. “Obviously there are still a lot of social barriers in London, but when you get all these people in one room it feels like those barriers are falling,” he said.
What really made the collection shine, however, was Ives’ thoughtful use of upcycled materials. Ives is one of the most eloquent young voices in London fashion on sustainability, but he is also careful to speak only about what he really knows. “I think everyone needs to be a little more honest about what we’re doing on that front,” he said. “There are a lot of buzzwords flying around all the time, and I’m not sure many people really know what they mean.” For autumn, his disgust at the wastefulness of our consumer world was subtly woven: many of his jersey pieces were made from military surplus, something he describes as an example of ‘waste in more ways than one’, while a striking silk bubble The dress is made from a Qing dynasty tapestry, which he deliberately left in its rough state (unlike, for example, the restoration process he embarks on with the piano shawls he buys from antique dealers). It served as a powerful reminder of the beauty found in the discarded and forgotten.
Which brings us to that final look: a white organza dress, hand-embroidered with discarded headphone cables sourced from an electronics factory. (Ives is nothing if not a fashion nerd, and you get the feeling that the idea of ending every show with a bridal look is catnip for a designer who grew up idolizing the great French couturiers as he scrolled through his monthly issue of Fashion.) Worn by Weinstock, it was neatly paraded around the room and then stood in a place of honor in the center as the models took their final walk to Björk’s ‘Headphones’. It turns out that Ives’ inspiration actually lay in his frustration with the idea of the junk drawer. But here Ive’s trash turned into treasure, and even Capote’s most haughty Swans couldn’t turn their noses up at it.
