Marios Schwab fuk@lfw s/s 07

There's something about waiting over two hours, outside, at night for a show, that knocks the shine off the event when it finally happens. That shows will get held back until guests make it from the previous late-running show is an occupational hazard. But once the likes of big guns such as Suzy Menkes have arrived, a further 40 minute wait is taking the proverbial.

From a distance, Marios Schwab's pretty dresses look simple. It is, according to the press notes, only when you get up close and personal that their clever construction and intricate geometry come to the fore.

This season, the hexagon recurs throughout Schwab's collection, creating a honeycombed effect on jersey garments that is somewhere between smooth and tactile. The assembly of fabric into what Schwab calls a ‘futuristic patchwork' results in movement that owes more to cut than the stretch of the fabric.

There is lots of drapery which contrasts nicely with clean necklines. Prints include brash rosebuds on black which fade to sunbleached pastels, and paisley hybrids plundered from traditional bandanas. Blacks, burgundies and flesh tones dominate the range and large jet black Swarovski decorate the upper body and, in some cases, the knee joints.

We like the crushed paper taffeta shirts, the sprayed on black trousers and Schwab's trademark metallic appliqués, although curvier models (ie girls with breasts) would have filled them better and shown them off to greater effect.

Words: Maia Adams
Photos: Judith Erwes