McQ showed on the catwalk at for the first time in its six year history in what was a powerful assertion of the label’s place within Alexander McQueen’s legacy. All the McQueen DNA was present at McQ’s A/W12 show at The Sorting Office High Holborn, but simply delivered in a more compact and accessible package.

Taking a stripped back wartime aesthetic as her starting point, with felted wool and tan and hunter green tailoring, Sarah Burton weaved a collection that was in parts army surplus and in others Black Watch. To finish were beautiful tulle and applique dresses reminiscent of the luxury and excess of Dior’s New Look – modelled by Kristen McMenamy with a gothic twist.

This was a collection of retro-romanticism rendered in rich fabrics and dark tones, proving the almost impossible, that a diffusion range can still be luxurious and beautifully tailored – prepare to see more McQ everyday.

mcq.com

Tags: Alexander Mcqueen, london fashion week, McQ, Sarah Burton