Accessories are generally my least favorite part of any Burberry show. I will admit that honestly I have never met a Burberry purse that you could pay me to carry. LFW's Burberry Prorsum show failed to change that. I have yet to see a Burberry 'tote' that I would willingly tote HOWEVER Christopher Bailey has shown us that what he can do with Burberry's clothing aesthetic he is more than capable of doing with its accessories collection.
Although there wasn't a bag I would carry the collection was awash with sumptuous leather gloves, some woven and others studded; which, when held with the spectacular umbrellas with complimenting studded handles creates the perfect juxstaposition with the rich colors and fabrics. The hardness of the metal, the unforgiving nature of the black shiny leather set off the classical English textiles perfectly. The contrast between the tweeds, corduroys, plaids and stripes, and the hard silver studs was thrilling.
And don't even get me started on the clutches. They were absolutely brilliant, adorned with animal motifs they appeal to every girl and hark back to Burberry's routes- as an outdoors-wear company. They were somewhere reminiscent of Mulberry's F/W 2011 collection with it's fox and owl motifs; however, if Mulberry was Bailey's inspiration he managed to make it all Burberry- translating the images into a new and modern light. Moreover, it was nice to see a common thread of inspiration running through the London collections- especially between two brands which share a somewhat similar aesthetic.
The belts as well took off where F/W 2011 left off. You may remember the corded and bowed belts cinching in the over sized silhouettes of the bright orange and blue hunting jackets. Well they have evolved. This season they are back but now they are thinner and suede cinching in the Burberry equivalent of a Barbour, they are in leather and curdoroy bowed and cinching in the modernized pencil skirt.
And.... I can't forget the men's accessories. The walking sticks, the flat caps, the man bags- Bailey proves that what he does for women he is more than capable of doing for men and it was cool. Most importantly it was cool, none of it was overly feminine. Just like the men's clothes themselves it felt somewhat that you were stepping into a Guy Ritchie movie.
Finally there were the umbrellas. Absolutely impossible to ignore this Burberry and English staple- particularly when the heavens opened on the runway. As usual Burberry continues to impress. The handles, the colors- every Londoner will want one this season.
