FASHION Magazine
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Emilia Wickstead’s modern take on old world elegance has met its match in the Duchess of Cambridge
See Kate Middleton’s Emilia Wickstead looks »
Photography by Chris Jackson/Getty Images
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Photography by Danny Martindale/WireImage
Photography by Tim P. Whitby/Getty Images
Photography by WPA Pool/Getty Images
Emilia Wickstead is a name you’ll start hearing often. Operating on a more feminine frequency than many of her edgy London contemporaries, she sits poised for an international takeover, partly because of her association with another ultra-feminine name: Kate Middleton. Perhaps most directly though, she’s got the chops.
A native New Zealander, 29-year-old grew up with a made-to-measure designer for a mother and ample creativity in her veins. She moved to London to study fashion marketing and spent time in New York interning for Proenza Schouler, Narcisco Rodriguez and Vogue Magazine. After a few years of working made-to-measure, Wickstead launched a ready-to-wear collection in 2011 at London Fashion Week. Fast-forward to today, and she’s gotten Emilia Wickstead creations on the Duchess of Cambridge at least five times by our count, and those five have been amongst Kate’s best and often-repeated pieces. She has also dressed Samantha Cameron, the notoriously fashion-loving wife of British PM David Cameron, and made clients of online retailers Matches and Net-a-Porter.
When we met the designer last month in Toronto, those high-profile connections were especially clear. Dressed in an exquisite low cut A-line dress of her own creation, Wickstead explained why the new brand of sophisticated modernity is all about what isn’t revealed: “I design very much how I dress at 29,” she says. “If I am [wearing] something short, I like to be quite covered on top and if I am wearing something to the knee, I like an open back or a low neck. I think there is something very sexy in the way of dressing like that doesn’t have to be show all and tell all.”
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Spring 2013’s top fashion week moments: The 28 shows, models, parties and trends we’ll never forget
Photography by Peter Stigter Compiled by Sarah Casselman, Zeina Esmail, Caitlan Moneta and Bernadette Morra
As we prepare to dive head first into a new season of trends to try, must-haves to buy and warmer weather to embrace, we take a look back at the weeks that started it all. Hitting the runways back in September, the Spring 2013 fashion week season brought us the hula hoop bag (Chanel), the Google glass headset (DVF), the ever-revolving designer door (Raf/Hedi/Jil and so on). Take a visual trip back to Spring 2013, as our globetrotting editors distil 28 of the most memorable moments from New York to Paris and back again.
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LFW Diary: More brilliant showings from Peter Pilotto, Burberry, and Christopher Kane. Plus, Kanye shows up front row at Mark Fast!
The Burberry finale shot by Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images It brings a tear to my eye that London Fashion Week is almost all over for another season—but my feet are not-so-silently rejoicing. A 9 a.m. start at Peter Pilotto meant leaving the house just past 8 this morning, but it was worth it. The Topshop venue, which is the old Billingsgate Market this season, always serves up coffee, tea, and all sorts of yummy dishes (yesterday there was a creamy soup with truffle oil; today there was porridge for breakfast); there’s also the NewGen pop-up where I scored the Erdem tank with a blue porcelain print and white lace collar and the Mary Katrantzou floral tee. Breakfast, shopping, and a show? Every day, please.