Fashion

Latest highlights from London Fashion Week

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Hot on the patent heels of New York Fashion Week, London's own spring/summer showcase kicked off on Friday. The biannual show usually generates orders of over £100 million ($158 million) and is one of the fashion world's "big four" events, along with the New York, Milan and Paris fashion weeks.

More than 5,000 visitors are expected to attend the five-day show, which has a reputation for avant-garde quirkiness compared to its more commercial New York cousin. U.K. fashion bastions are always present, and big names at this year's show include Burberry, Christopher Kane, Erdem, Mulberry and Tom Ford. The show is also a "see and be seen" event for many celebrities, as well as fashion-forward Londoners, who loiter in the vicinity hoping to be snapped by fashion bloggers.

Click ahead for some highlights from London Fashion Week Spring/Summer 2014.

—By CNBC's Katy Barnato with Bianca Schlotterbeck and Alice Tidey

Stylish romance (Burberry)

David M. Benett | Getty Images

One Direction's Harry Styles watched Cara Delevingne lead the catwalk at Burberry, fueling rumors the two had rekindled their 2012 romance. Also in the front row were singer Paloma Faith, Hollywood actress Sienna Miller and model Suki Waterhouse.

The teenage Styles told CNBC he was a Burberry fan, and summed up the 157-year-old brand.

"It's iconic, British, understated and nice and cool," he said. "They don't try to do anything too crazy they just do what they're good at."

Meanwhile, Burberry CEO Angela Ahrendts told CNBC she was confident that Chinese demand for luxury goods will continue to grow, despite the government's crackdown on ostentatious purchases.

(Read more: Gift-giving crackdown hits China luxury retailers)

"It's the new normal and we've budgeted for it….I think that people forget that in the next year, 100 million consumers will exit that country and travel to flagship markets all over the world," she said.


Quite white (Erdem)

Stuart C. Wilson, Getty Images

Monochrome reigned supreme at Erdem's catwalk show on Monday. The Montreal-born designer is a favorite of Prince William's wife, Catherine, who wore Erdem dresses during her pregnancy and on an official trip to Canada in 2011.

(Read more: Royal birth 'overwhelmingly positive' for UK economy)

Fashion royalty (Ashish)

Stuart C. Wilson and Antonio de Moraes Barros | Getty Images and WireImage

Ashish nailed the royal-with-a-hangover look on the catwalk at this year's London Fashion Week, with models combining crowns with torn jeans and oversized t-shirts for a trip to the grocery store. The Coca-Cola logo also featured heavily, perhaps in reference to its reported rejuvenating qualities.

(Read more: Apple leaves Coke flat in global top brand survey)


Dutch designs (House of Holland)

AFP

Henry Holland's penchant for bright colors went beyond his collection onto the catwalk itself, which was adorned with abstract purple clouds. The British designer's signature style is "bold, colourful, irreverent" and this collection featured Americana checks, shirt dresses and capri pants.

(Swim with the tide: Trends from Fashion Week Swim 2014)

Strike a pose

David M. Benett | Getty Images

Singer Ellie Goulding and model Rosie Huntington-Whiteley combined camera-luring forces and posed together at a drinks reception hosted by Elle magazine to celebrate London Fashion Week.

Lilac limelight (Bora Aksu)

Ian Gavan | Getty Images

Turkish designer Bora Aksu returned to his roots with peasant skirts, puffed sleeves and mesh finishes. But his stripy pastel colored dresses also seemed to reference Lewis Caroll's Alice in Wonderland, with lilac a favorite hue.

(Fashion exposed: Scenes from Lingerie Fashion Week)

Contemporary spin (Vivienne Westwood)

David M. Benett and Antonio de Moraes Barros | Getty Images and WireImage

Why walk when you can dance? British supermodel Lily Cole went one better than most on the catwalk, opening Vivienne Westwood's Red Label show with an interpretative dance. Cole circled the runway in a voluminous Grecian-style gown, red hair flying, in support of Westwood's efforts to highlight environmental issues.

(More from London Fashion Week: Is sustainability on trend?)

Pantomime dames (Vivienne Westwood)

Mike Marsland | WireImage

Vivienne Westwood's choice of makeup provoked as much comment as her clothes, with some slamming the models' "bizarre" washed-out faces and heavy brows as distracting. The two models here posed backstage to show off their just-got-out-of-bed hair styles and on-trend nails.

Topshop tycoon

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Anna Wintour, first lady of fashion and editor-in-chief of American Vogue, was among those on the front row of Topshop's Unique show this weekend. U.K. retail mogul Philip Green, son Brandon and model collaborator Kate Moss also watched supermodels Cara Delevingne and Jourdan Dunn strut down the catwalk.

Green, who is the CEO of Topshop-owner Arcadia Group, told CNBC that Topshop's expansion policy was different from competitors such as Zara and H&M.

"I think we are being a bit more careful in how we grow," Green told CNBC. "From that point of view, I am comfortable where we are. We haven't gone off into any market in a crazy way."

(Read more: At Topshop, chirping is the new tweeting)

On display (Mulberry)

David M. Benett | Getty Images

Celebrity attendees at Mulberry's show flocked to a peacock wall painting to strike a pose, with English model Alexa Chung and English actors Douglas Booth and Juno Temple all zoning in on the grassy spot.

Mellow Yellow (Paul Smith)

Stuart C. Wilson, Getty Images

U.K. fashion veteran Paul Smith showcased a relaxed collection on Sunday, with plenty of oversized suits in spring colors. Baggy cropped pants and sun hats also featured.

Street style: Fashion bloggers

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It's important to look good at fashion week, particularly if you're blogger poised to dissect the event. Fashion writer and model Ella Catliff, and bloggers Susie "Bubble" Lau and Andrea Magrath, were among those watching the shows with a critical eye, and are seen here outside London Fashion Week's Somerset House headquarters.

Minimal Vision (Yifang Wan)

Stuart C. Wilson, Getty Images

Award-winning designer Yifang Wan launched a pared down collection on Friday, combining oversized coats with cutout dresses and color-block sunglasses.

Fyodor's feathers (Fyodor Golan)

Samir Hussein | Getty Images

The Israeli/Latvian duo behind Fyodor Golan has past form on the London catwalk, where it landed in 2012 with an alien-esque model immersed in green glitter. This Friday's show was more earthbound, with knee- and full-length pastel dresses emblazoned with bird of paradise-colored feathers.

(Fashion footnotes: Here come the shoes)