From The Straits Times    |

The bi-annual shows from Burberry Prorsum womenswear are highlights on the Spring Summer and Autumn Winter fashion calendar for London Fashion Week, and the collection for Spring Summer 2013 was no exception.

Once again Burberry’s chief creative officer Christopher Bailey sent a tightly edited collection down the runway with the focus on super-shiny fabrications, see-through plastic bags ‒ perfect for the beach ‒ and sharp silhouettes based on the classic Burberry mack.

Burberry Prorsum Spring Summer 2013 DECOR 2

Fun bright colours of magenta, aqua green and sky blue were leavened with a generous sprinkling of crisp white and various nudes; while deeper touches of navy, green and a dark pinkish red added a layer of visual interest.

According to Bailey the collection revolved around “corsets and capes” ‒ obvious in the looks with practically every model adorned with a cape of some sort, the mini-mini versions will keep the rain off your shoulders at least, and the corsets appeared mostly in the form of swimsuits.

There were lovely renditions of the trench as dresses, a corset version and a cape version, alongside corset-seamed skirts, tops and dresses, and some very short, short shorts ‒ designed only for the very brave, very skinny or models one thinks ‒ which despite not being that wearable for the ordinary woman looked stunning on the runway and models’ bodies.

The super-shiny effect came from the materials used that included a double cotton sateen, metallic leather and silk, plastic and a lot of satin. A bit of lace and some feathers added texture to an otherwise visually slick collection.

Accessories wise Burberry Prorsum Spring Summer 2013 featured the Blaze bag in a range of metallic leathers in popping colourways, as well as a completely see-through “jelly” version, also in bright colours, and what looks like a satin fabric version. For shoes the peep-toe returned as a satin and metallic python wedge, or closed-toe, pointy version. As for makeup – which thanks to Burberry Beauty is now another part of the brand you can invest in – “Siren” red lips ruled the catwalk.

BURBERRY ACROSS THE WORLD
As has become customary, Burberry also stood out at London Fashion Week for its 100 per cent, 360 degree integration with the World Wide Web. Taking the Burberry Prorsum Spring Summer 2013 womenswear show to the world, there were three simultaneous and connected live shows that blurred the physical and digital worlds. The show ran “live” at Hyde Park, live-streamed at Burberry World (Burberry.com) and was also shown “live” onto the tallest retail screen in the world at Burberry Regent Street. Naturally all three events were supported by Burberry’s various social media products on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

Adding to the brand’s total integration with the digital world was its “personalised” emails sent from Christopher Bailey to the mobile devices of the guests at the Hyde Park and Regent Street events, inviting them to check out the live stream; the guests could also share their access via Facebook, unlocking more show content and sharing with their friends. You could even “Love” individual pieces from the collection via a new Burberry “Love” button on Facebook.

On top of all this interactivity, customers are able to order the looks they loved immediately – and have them delivered in eight weeks! That really is “runway to reality”.

SINGAPORE GETS FIRST BURBERRY PRORSUM RUNWAY SHOW

Burberry Prorsum Spring Summer 2013 DECOR

Thanks to the wonders of technology Singapore will be the first country – and only country in Asia – to broadcast a Burberry Prorsum runway show on an outdoor video screen. The video wall at Knightsbridge on Orchard Road will screen the Burberry Prorsum Spring Summer 2013 runway show on Sunday, September 23, at 8.30pm.

There will even be a personalised message from Christopher Bailey to Singapore’s Burberry fans that will air prior to the screening of the runway show via direct telecast from London.

For more information about the Burberry Prorsum Spring Summer 2013 womenswear collection and to shop the looks – they are only available for a short time – go to sg.burberry.com/ss13-womenswear. You can also speak to the Burberry sales associates at the ION Orchard flagship store for more information.