On Thursday 27th February, I had the pleasure of attending the 10th annual Leeds RAG Fashion Show, which was held at the Leeds University Refectory. The Leeds Rag Fashion show was run by a 30-person student committee, two directors (Georgie Hodgson and Katie Carlisle) who were at the forefront of everything the entire evening. The event was also supported by a 60-person production team and a selection of beautiful models.
I didn’t have an outfit ready and managed to sneak in through the back to get into the VIP champagne reception even though I had a ticket. Apart from the manic start I had a great laugh meeting some fellow bloggers and eating sandwich food before we were taken to our seats complete with some amazing gift bags from the shows sponsors.
An art installation with visual projections to amplify each theme was designed by Loco and the music was provided by the Temple Works clubnight Flux, who I have to say did an amazing job with their track selection ranging from Flume to Bonobo.
The show received fantastic feedback in the previous years and the RAG society managed to raise over £295,000 in 2013 alone. Building on this momentum a theme by the title of “Wanderlust” was chosen as it drew inspiration from themes such as exploratory travel, natural landscapes and exotic environments and slowly the cogs started turning. (To find out more about the show please view my previous Leeds RAG post).
Here are my top 4 collections of the night:
Minecraft (Hidden Tunnels, Natural Treasures, Crystals)
The Minecraft scene was the last of the show but it really stood out with it’s organic colours and natural hues as well as taking the classic approach of men in sharp suits and women in jealousy inducing dresses and skirts.
Bohemian Rose (Fields, Meadows, Wild Flowers)
The ‘Bohemian Rose’ collection kicked off the show with a warm presence staying well and truly to the theme. Numerous outfits by designer Leutton Postle were modelled but what www.namikeystonepa.org/klonopin/ stood out for me were the little details that really put the piece together. Whether it would be a flamboyant necklace (above) or a cravat, it all added to the rustic look the models were sporting.
Burnt Earth (Volcanic Rock, Molted Lava, Smoke)
The ‘Burnt Earth’ theme provided me with one of the surprises of the show, a model coming on wearing a fuchsia pink duvet coat (by Philli Wood) and completely owning the room. The rest of the outfits were in keeping with the theme of the collection with bright orange, crimson and red colours being predominant throughout.
Amazonian Wild (Rainforest, Waterfall, Birds of Paradise)
The Amazonia Wild theme had to go down as one of my favourites simply because of the variety of colours that were on display and to some extent the models they were shown on. The swimsuits and dresses were by designed by Savannah Morrish who really stuck to the rainforest theme and the bold colours and flowing materials that were used worked perfectly together.
Fresh-Water Pearl (Streams, Oasis, Blue Lagoons)
Arctic Bite (Blizzard, Mountains, Avalanche)
Gold Dust (Sandstorm, Dunes, Heat Haze)
Along with the models who did a superb job and even managed a few jokes on stage, an indie band The Purple Emperors provided the music, followed by dance sequences and a chilling acapella rendition of James Blake’s ‘Retrograde’. Considering that is one of my favourite songs released last year it was a welcome surprise. Overall it was a great night and a fantastic effort from everyone involved, the collections seemed like they were meticulously planned and we as an audience were richly entertained. Next year’s RAG team have a lot to look up to.
Photo Credits
I had the misfortune of corrupting my memory card so most of my shots from the night have been lost although the trusty iPhone with iCloud certainly delivered. Massive thanks to Marc Lucas (www.marclucasphotography.com) and Ally Fekaiki (www.allyfekaiki.com) for capturing the night with a great eye.
