I hate being one of 'those' bloggers writing negative posts, but I feel like something needs to be said...
For the past 5 years my mum and I have always looked forward to visiting and attending London Fashion Weekend. For those of you who may not have heard of it, London Fashion Weekend is a way for ordinary people interested in fashion to become a part of London Fashion Week. We love this factor as it makes you feel apart of LFW as it was where the shows were held. They have stalls featuring designers from all over the world showcasing clothes, jewellery, bags and shoes. Maybelline New York are a sponsor and have a little pop up shop where you can get your makeup done. In writing it sounds amazing and usually that is the feedback I would give. This year it was different. For some reason or another it was held at the Saatchi Gallery rather than at Somerset House. Whether this is because of the move to Brewer Street I don't know! I was a little unsure how this would work out before buying tickets, as the Saatchi Gallery is considerably smaller to begin with, but as it is something my mum and I do together I bought us tickets and was looking forward to it.
As soon as we arrived you could tell it would be different. The place was heaving. I understand that with change comes issues, but there were a few things which could have been done to have made it run smoother. To begin with the 'help desk' at the front wasn't very 'helpful'. They had no clue what was on each floor and you could tell that they were very apologetic for not knowing. (For this I feel bad for them.) If you have visited the Saatchi Gallery before then you will know that it is primarily an art gallery. This can be seen by the narrow alleyways and small spaces provided. Clearly it wasn't designed for shoppers with large shopping bags! I mean it was never going to work with 2 lifts for hundreds of people! The fact there is only one set of tiny stairs as well is bonkers!
With this being said my mum and I walked around and tried to enjoy ourselves. We visited a lot of the stalls that we have previously loved. (although there didn't seem to be as many retailers there!) I treated myself to two Zoe Karssen jumpers that I love! I also fell in love with many sunglasses which I NEED! We had silver tickets so were entitled to a 'goody bag', or leaflet bag as we like to call it, and a fashion show. Seeing as there was limited space for the fashion shows it was to no surprise that the designer show Henry Holland had sold out. We watched the Trend show which usually leaves us feeling inspired. In the past couple of years of watching these shows it is nice to see the host talk though the collections then go backstage, while the models walk, before coming back out to talk some more. This was definitely not the case. Not only were there some issues with seating, but the show felt rushed. Luckily mum and I were able to sit together, this isn't the case for some of the other people around us which obviously caused many complaints and annoyed guests. The lack of show space was an issue and the show wasn't enjoyable for fear of getting in somebody's view. The whole atmosphere felt very tense and due to the long catwalk, as soon as the host walked to the other end away from where I was sitting people began to talk and it was almost as if the show hadn't started. For me this ruined the whole experience. The clothes in the show were very wearable though which is good and made a change from the outrageous looks often seen on the runway. A couple of the looks I know that I am going to be able to recreate which will be nice for autumn!
Another minor issue that I found was with Elle magazine. Each year I renew my subscription at the event and I was sad to see that the move of venue meant that Elle hadn't come with it. Such a shame seeing that you were able to still buy the issue there without renewing! I am hoping to get this sorted at some point this week!
Overall I am sad to say that this year I wouldn't recommend visiting London Fashion Weekend in the future if it continues to be at the Saatchi Gallery. Wherever you went you heard the same moans and groans of people feeling annoyed and confined to a small area. There must be a reason that it isn't at Somerset House, but the Saatchi Gallery wasn't the right place to hold it. Somerset House made you feel special and a part of something. Saatchi attracted a completely different crowd of people. The type of people who thought they had more of a right to be there than you did. I will be writing to London Fashion Weekend enquiring the change so will be updating this post if I get a reply, fingers crossed I do!
Sorry for a bit of a negative post, but I felt that something needed to be said. I hope you all have a lovely week!
Lots of love,
xxx
