London Fashion Week starts on Friday and as the world waits with bated breath for the latest designs to hit the catwalks for Spring-Summer 2014, it’s worth remembering England’s fashion heritage.
Your-Hols.com has teamed up with the national tourist board, www.visitengland.com, to bring you a selection of the country’s best fashion destinations.
Alexander McQueen’s London
Host to fashion week, the capital is more than just the capital of cool. It is home to the world’s biggest Burberry Store (top) where you can even put a trench coat to the test in a rain simulatot, the Fashion & Textile Museum and of course the V&A which exhibits fashion through the ages.
There’s lots of fashion week fun between shows too: there are fashion week cocktails at Harvey Nichols, you can take a swig of Simone Rocha’s Cointreau, or treat yourself to a model spa session at the Mayfair Hotel.
You can pay homage to some of the best designers, including the late Alexander McQueen (above), with a tour of Savile Row. Here you can check out Anderson & Shepard, where he started he started his career as a young apprentice. You can also siscover archived collections of Henry Poole, dubbed the “Godfather” of this illustrious street, and whose bespoke and traditional tailoring has been worn by Winston Churchill, Lord Nelson and even James Bond.
Matthew Williamson’s Manchester
Fan of Matthew Williamson? You can visit his home city. Check out Tib Street Fashion Market (above), where visitors can find the latest up and coming names in fashion. Other Mancunian must-sees include indie haunt Affleck’s Palace and Oscar Pinto’s high-end boutique, Hervia Bazaar. This local knows a thing or two about trends, having also bought the flagship Adidas Y-3 and various Vivenne Westwood stores.
The city is also home to the award-winning Stockport Hat Works Museum and Platt Hall’s Gallery of Costume, the largest collection of clothing and accessories in Britain.
Sir Paul Smith’s Nottinghamshire
Sir Paul Smith is one of the East Midlands’ modern legends, and his home city of Nottingham has plenty for fashionistas. Start your Paul Smith pilgrimage by visiting 10 Byard Lane (above). To onlookers, this ordinary outlet in Nottingham City Centre may not seem special, but this is where the first Paul Smith retail store was opened in 1974 and still remains.
As well as the first shop, fans can also visit the brand’s flagship store at Willoughby House, a five-floor, Grade II listed building in which showrooms display both men’s and women’s collections. The house stands atop the famous Nottingham caves which create the store’s basement. While here, catch a film in Screen 4 at the Broadway Cinema. This room carries the brand’s signature stripe, and was designed and opened by Sir Paul Smith.
At the end of a long day’s shopping, treat yourself to a stay at Langar Hall Hotel, a favourite of Sir Paul who is good friends with the hotel’s owner.
Antonio Berardi’s Lincolnshire
Grantham boy Antonio Berardi and the catwalk king’s legacy can still be discovered in his home county. Visitors can visit Lincoln College of Art (above), where Berardi studied fashion, to roam the same department halls and rub shoulders with staff members who were educated by Berardi’s side. The school holds Coming into Fashion, an event officially launched in 2008 by Berardi and later supported by Paul Smith in 2010. This glamorous annual event is one of the highlights of Lincoln’s cultural calendar and a chance for audiences to see some of the most beautiful and creative work by the fashion stars of the future.
Burberry’s Hampshire
The roots of Burberry’s famous trenchcoat can be traced back to Hampshire. Born near Dorking, Thomas Burberry started his career as an apprentice at a drapery prior to opening his first outfitting store on Basingtoke’s Winchester Street in 1856. Sadly, the original store burnt down in 1938, along with early collections, however tourists can still view his full length Edwardian raincoat at The Willis Museum (above) along with smocks, advertisements and packaging.
In addition to his premier store, Burberry also set up three factories in Basingstoke. While these no longer exist, visitors can gain access to Whitchurch Silk Mill in the small eponymous market town. Known to be the last working silk mill in the south of England, the mill was once used to produce the checked print silk that famously lined Burberry raincoats. It now functions as a working museum, making silks for interiors and costume dramas.
