Our intrepid reporter, Lauren of Fashion Looks North, reports back on this exciting show from last week:

Despite the fact The End of Summer Fashion Show is now three years old, I had never had the pleasure of attending, having previously been otherwise engaged madly dashing up and down the A1 and finishing my University course. This year, however, was different and after waiting with great anticipation Saturday finally came around and off I went to Left Bank Leeds…

Upon arrival I set out to explore the selection of stalls around the outside of the catwalk and did my bit for chosen charity for the evening Water Aid by treating myself to a drink,(or two…or three) from the bar. I chose to ignore the carefully set out seats and plumped for a spot at the base of a stone pillar. This actually proved to be a truly poor decision as it wasn’t the most comfortable nor warm seat, however the slight numbing feeling was worth it for the view!

After a thoroughly entertaining and mesmerising performance from violinist Kate Chruscicka, the show got underway and our host for the evening appeared prompting notebooks, pens and cameras to be put on standby ready for the collections to unfold.

The standard was high and we were treated to a variety of both mens and womenswear featuring street and indie inspirations as well as carefully constructed tailoring and glamorous eveningwear. Not all the collections were to my taste, but the fact there was something for everyone was one of the key elements of the evening that really made it work.

In my eyes, the stars of the show have to be Roc and Doll, Naomi Ding and Helen Barran, who each presented beautifully executed clothes with a strong look and brand identity. Helen’s references to Victorian styling did slightly venture into the realms of costume as oppose to wearability; however, you couldn’t fail to be impressed by the exquisite pleating, gathering and folding techniques used to create her structural jackets and voluminous skirts. We were given our ‘wow-factor’ injection via the glamorous body con lengths and sumptuous layering brought by Roc and Doll, each with a quirky offset including thigh skimming skirt slits.

Naomi Ding’s collection was my favourite of the evening. Exuding the simple elegance found in the work of the likes of Alexander Wang, her intricate leather pieces were perfectly paired with soft and feminine fabrics. With a discreet yet effective nod to this season’s bondage trend through structural harnessing, her clothes were directional but wearable.

Overall I was really impressed by the all aspects of the show. I thought the suitably dramatic venue of Left Bank set the scene perfectly for the creative collections and the team had clearly put in a lot of effort to ensure it ran smoothly. A big thank you goes to Michael Walker Photography for the fantastic catwalk shots – a bit of a lifesaver as my camera rather unceremoniously died on me just before the event!