Ashley Williams, who graduated in Fashion Design back in 2012 at The University of Westminster, has shown that being unique is not dead.
Her collection, shown during London Fashion Week, is extremely important and one to remember for seasons to come. The PVC coats and dresses between ice cream pink fur coats and patchwork jumpers are the start of a new era for NEWGEN designers.
Like Gareth Pugh, Meadham Kirchoff, and to an extent, Alexander McQueen, doing your own thing with a twist of what is on trend is certainly a highlight of any fashion week. It shows that the designers can follow their own intuition and personal style that leads to a creative line, which ultimately stands out from the crowd and gives them the recognition that they deserve.
Ashley Williams nailed her AW15 collection for this reasons. She brought out a goth/grunge edge to style that was completely different to the grunge we’ve seen before, say in Saint Laurent’s AW13 collection that was a Courtney Love-meets-90s-Gwen Stefani from start to finish.
Her 90s acidity with 80s volume is a combination that works incredibly to the point where her collection could be one of the best not only from London Fashion Week but from the AW15 collection premiers entirely. It was loud and vibrant but for all the right reasons. Led by Georgia Jagger, Ashley’s collection split the fashion crowd who either loved her work or were unsure what place it had within the industry. The latter, in my opinion, are wrong because being that individual and unique certainly works for the big dogs, so it will most definitely work for Ashley.
While her collection differs from that of the impressive, 70s inspired Chloé collection or the fresh Emilia Wickstead AW15 show, Ashley Williams has started a trend within fashion: how to shout and not care about how loud you’re being.
