Louise Gray FW13-14
LOUISE GRAY presents HEY CRAZY, her collection for autumn/winter 2013 which sees LOUISE apply her signature sense of colour and clash to tailored pieces that are perfect for daywear. Fabrics have been specially woven for the collection, to bring intricate and advanced pattern to women with a devil-may-care attitude. “It’s so nice to see people dressed fabulously during the day,” says LOUISE. “I’ve found a confidence in tailoring, and it’s exactly what I want to wear right now.”
LOUISE has created new patterned cloths for the show they are so special, she has given each a name of its own. There’s “Piercings”, Giraffe” or “Tube Map” among others, with which often have a double layer of image within one pattern. LOUISE has used these double jacquards on pieces such as bell-shaped swing coats, the volume of fabric needed all the better to show off the pattern. “It’s good to have a roomier coat for winter,” says LOUISE. The double jacquards are also smashed into shift dresses with panels of leather, as well as matching jackets and skirts.
The patterns appear in other guises throughout the collection, such as the squiggles of “Tube Map” printed in black and white onto a shirt, or draped double-printed silk dresses, with crossovers and tiers, the silk sandblasted so that the cloth becomes faded. Also in the collection are knits, which for autumn/winter are patchworks of different colours and tensions joined together to create a covetable whole.
LOUISE’s key influence for the season was the Happenings movement of New York from 1958-1963, as well as the statement work of Barbara Kruger. LOUISE has collaborated for a second season with ROBERT CLERGERIE to create shoes which are a natural extension of the clothes, the heeled leather boots a perfect encapsulation of the prints and colours in the collection. LOUISE has also worked again with STEPHEN JONES to create hats for the collection, and has made some sunglassses and glasses, complete with eyelashes already on the glass, with LUNETTES KOLLEKTION.
