Burberry Prorsum

Spring 2013

Colour Palette-  Navy, Green, Yellow, Gold, White, Cream, Pink, Burlesque Red, Brown

Garment shapes- Cape jackets and coats, hot pants, cap sleeve dresses, fitted pencil skirts.

Length- knee length

Textiles Techniques-  lace, pleats, embellishment 

Prints-  detailed lizard and lace, small repeat patterns that build up texture 

Fabric- metallic leather, lace, wool

Key details-  3/4 sleeves/ cap sleeves, capes, curved panels, metallic leather, single pockets, 

Looks- metallic bikini and white cape, pleated sheer hot pants and pleated metallic gold jacket, knee length dress metallic print collar and elbow length sleeves, cape short jackets, slim fitted pencil skirt, leather cape oversized jacket, pleated tap shorts, cape jacket with lizard print, slick fitted metallic fitted dress, cap sleeves and panels, embellished double breasted jacket. 

Accessories -clutch, wedges, waist belts, 

Style.com Review by Tim Blanks

The Burberry Prorsum show today was a three-in-one affair: the physical show in the park, the live stream to the company's new flagship store a few miles away on Regent Street, and then the whole global digital fandango. That's a vast gallery to be playing to, and there was a strong sense with today's presentation that Christopher Bailey was ramping up the entertainment value accordingly. "People are stopping work to watch," he said. "You've got to give them a good reason." 

"Corsets and Capes" was the theme of the day. Its initial expression was as a white cape over a swimsuit in ruched pink satin. The image was something from an old movie, the scene where Tallulah the kooky heiress throws a fur coat over her knickers and chases after her lover. Cinematic? It got more so. The progressively more elaborate iterations of the classic trench—from purest white through ruched pink and ombréd fuchsia to coppery lace and feathers—should earn the coat an Oscar for versatility. The finale featured trenches of many colors, "so intense," said the designer, "you could wring them out." 

Bailey claimed he wanted to communicate "a very British glamour." For him, that appeared to reach its apex sometime in the 1940s. Here, there were tap shorts, peplums, wedge heels, slinky pencil skirts with kick pleats—and those capes and corsets, of course. That says something about where Burberry, whose history is so rooted in the practical, is headed—toward escapism. The new store is a giant techno-playground, and, as Bailey noted, the show today was about giving people a reason to watch. That's entertainment. Now we have to wait and see if it also gave them a reason to wear.

Personal Review -The uses of metallic fluorescent colours drew me to this collection, it adds a reflective texture against the matt leather and wool. As well as introducing an electric, bold colour that contrasts against the darker colour tones. 

How it would work in my collection- As my collection consists of a dark Gothic colour palette it would be interesting to add reflective metallic colours through processes such as foiling or embellishment. This would be used to work into areas that lack detail or need a stronger contrast in the colour palette, introducing a electrical theme through my collection. Similar to the above but on a small scale.