The Guardian, UK
Sept 22 2004

Grown-up aesthetic bridges generation divide

Jess Cartner-Morley, fashion editor

At any catwalk show, the front row tells its own story. At Betty
Jackson yesterday, the glam duo of Jo and Leah Wood, wife and
daughter of Rolling Stone Ronnie, encapsulated the secret of the
designer’s success.
While London fashion week suffers from an uneasy generation gap,
divided between older designers who struggle to make headlines and
young ones who make headlines but precious few sales, Jackson
maintains a following among old and young.

The fashion climate is well suited to her designs. Both London and
New York have confirmed that bare midriffs are out and ladylike
dressing is in – at least for six months – meaning Jackson’s grown-up
aesthetic is back in the spotlight.

For next summer, her skirts and day dresses are knee-length; her
elegant trousers are worn low-slung but with a T-shirt tucked in.
Shirt-dresses in safari-brown cotton, and frocks in butterfly-print
silk, are worn with low-heeled metallic summer sandals – useful
clothes but with a healthy dose of frivolity.

Jackson describes her inspiration as the “decadent days of the 30s
together with the louche international lifestyles of the 70s”. For
evening, she sent out a showstopping long, pale column with art-deco
silver beading and a glamourous bead and feather-trimmed kaftan.

The 30s and 70s have cropped up repeatedly this season. New York had
Ralph Lauren’s 30s gowns and Luella’s “1970s Pacha” look; London has
seen Elspeth Gibson’s stunning 30s satin dresses and trousers in
classic Claridges shades of eau de nil and cream, and FrostFrench’s
Studio 54 glam.

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Far from being a coincidence, the emergence of these decades was, in
fact, inevitable – fashion ploughs through revivals at an alarming
rate, and the last two years have seen the 40s, 50s, 60s, and 80s.
Next season, it might be time for the 90s.

Earlier in the day, it was the turn of five emerging designers.
Unfortunately, most did little to challenge the stereotype that young
London designers’ collections are ugly, unwearable, and badly
presented – one expected a pair of one-legged trousers to appear any
moment. There was a ray of hope, however, in Gardem, the collection
by Garen Demerdijan, a Lebanese Armenian born in 1975 and based in
Paris.

Although yesterday was his first catwalk show, he has run a small
business since 2001, and has been stocked in the directional London
boutique Browns Focus for six seasons.

Yesterday’s collection had a sophistication of outlook and quality of
execution that set him apart from other young hopefuls.

Trendwatch Socks & high heels

Ankle socks with high heels, a favourite with the Hoxton fashionista
wishing to convey glamour and subversion, have this week become a
staple look.

At Jessica Ogden, left, socks were worn with chunky wedge sandals for
a nostalgic, schoolgirl effect. At Gardem, footlets – mini-socks that
leave your ankle and the top of your foot bare – made an unlikely
appearance, in black under strappy sandals.

But it was Paul Smith who showed the week’s newest combination. Long
ribbed socks almost to the knee were worn with loafers: very English
eccentric. Should you be tempted to follow suit, look for
fawn-coloured socks. A colour similar to but slightly darker than
your skin colour makes this a surprise leg-lengthener.