2025 Fashion Week(s) Round Up: From Haute Couture to RTW F/W25 & Everything in Between Plus My Personal Top 30 (Part 4)
-clockwise l-r: Tolu Coker RTW F/W25, Twinset ", Tom Ford "-
-l-r: UJOH RTW F/W25, Ulla Johnson "-
-clockwise l-r: Uma Wang RTW F/W25, Undercover ", Pre-fall 2025, Vaquera RTW F/W25-
-l-r: Valentino Pre-fall 2025, Haute Couture S/S25, RTW F/W25-
-l-r: Vautrait RTW F/W25, Veronique Leroy "-
-clockwise l-r: Victoria Beckham RTW F/W25, Versace ", Vivetta ", Victoria Beckham Pre-fall 2025-
-clockwise l-r: Viviano RTW F/W25, YIRANTIAN ", Viktor & Rolf Haute Couture S/S25, William Fan RTW F/W25-
-clockwise l-r: Xu Zhi RTW F/W25, Yohji Yamamoto ", Yueqi Qi ", Vivienne Westwood ", Zoe Gustavia Anna Whalen "-
-l-r: Zuhair Murad Haute Couture S/S25, RTW F/W25-
-Yuhan Wang RTW F/W25-
-Zimmerman RTW F/W25-
The 2025 Top 30
I like to keep this bit brief because these posts aren't meant to be text heavy and I don't want to go off on an unrelated rant but before I do get into my top 30 collections/designers of the year, I have to say FREE PALESTINE AND FUCK ISRAEL. Really cannot miss any opportunity to remind anyone who might stumble across this post that we need to stay angry about the situation. Until our countries stop arming the Israeli government, Palestine is recognised as its own state, and the IDF withdraw from their illegal occupation posts in Palestinian regions, calls for the freedom and dignity of Palestinians should be unavoidable.
I know it's out of place but when there is a preventable genocide occurring, there's no reason to not do something small to show you're against this today. For anyone in the UK who reads this post, there is a Greenpeace petition which demands our government declare a total embargo on the export of weapons to Israel. It needs another 9,000 signatures to reach its goal of 50,000 so this is the link I'm leaving today!
With each day that passes more lives are lost in this conflict, and weapons sold by the UK are fuelling the fire. British weapons should NOT
Now, in no particular order, I'll summarise my top 30 collections-or set of collections from one designer (cough cough Alessandro Michele's Valentino cough cough)-that were dropped this year.
-clockwise l-r: Vivienne Westwood RTW F/W25, Armani Privè Haute Couture S/S25, LoveShackFancy RTW F/W25, Giambattista Valli Haute Couture S/S25-
1. Vivienne Westwood RTW F/W25, creative dir. Andreas Kronthaler: This is the classic, wearable style Vivienne Westwood that I actually like. I'm not the biggest fan of Andreas Kronthaler's named collections but when he peels back his own design vision a bit, the results can be really good. Case in point, RTW F/W25. A lot of the pieces look like that very elusive brand of one of a kind, vintage Vivienne that only celebrity stylists seem to be capable of sourcing. The silhouettes, patterns and colours chosen for these garments reads like the greatest hits of street style incarnations of the brand.
2. Armani Privé Haute Couture S/S25, creative dir. Giorgio Armani: I was so dismissive of Armani for years...I thought it was just an old guy designing fancy co-ords for First Lady types and royal distant cousins so I never really looked at the collections properly. But when I saw a photoset some dresses from the most recent Armani Privé Haute Couture collections a couple of years ago, I gave them a second look. I get so excited for them now! The details are soo gorgeous! Exquisite, unique, elegant, everything about these pieces scream craftsmanship. Like how do you get satin to ripple like that!? It is something otherworldly.
3. LoveShackFancy RTW F/W25, creative dir. Rebecca Hessel Cohen: This collection is the LoveShackFancy that caught my attention the first time round. It's like a limited edition barbie doll range dedicated to Y2K does the '70s. Lush<3
4. Giambattista Valli, Haute Couture S/S25, creative dir. ": with a collection that evokes 21st century Greek Goddess and simultaneously the Bridgerton wardrobe department, Giambattista, as he so often does, highlights the through line which underlies beautiful garments throughout history.
-clockwise l-r: Patou RTW F/W25, Markgong ", 032c Men's RTW F/W25, Shushu/Tong RTW F/W25-
5. Patou, RTW F/W25, creative dir. Guillaume Henry: I’ve explained why I like Patou's aesthetic before and there is no way I can put it that doesn’t make me cringe. Calling anything “edgy” unironically makes me feel silly lol, but I don’t really know how else to encapsulate what I like about this collection or Patou in general without using that word. Guillaume Henry just does preppy (also a bit of a cringey word) and sophisticated with street style inspired edge—see the chain!—really well.
6. Markgong, RTW F/W25, creative dir. Mark Gong: Markgong is yet another Asian fashion brand that is consistently going up in my estimations. The combination of 90s/y2k nostalgia with a touch of 21st century polish, along with the subtle nods to the grunge kinderwhore craze covers satisfies my personal taste criteria on so many levels.
7. 032c, Men's RTW F/W25, creative dir. Maria Koch: Similar to Markgong & Patou, the women’s clothing from 032c men’s wear collection had a grungy, utilitarian feel to it without compromising on glamour or sex appeal. At times, it reminded me of the Bratz Rock Angelz-esque Blumarine collection from RTW S/S23, which is probably one of my absolute favourites since I started following the fashion week(s) calendar, sooo obviously this 032c collection is a memorable one for this season.
8. Shushu/Tong, RTW F/W25, creative dir(s). Liushu Lei and Yutong Jiang: Perfect collection. I won’t say much more about Shushu/Tong here because I have a long wordy fashiony post in the drafts where I ramble about my love for the brand enough already, lol!
-clockwise l-r: Yuhan Wang RTW F/W25, Coperni ", Danielle Frankel ", Blumarine "-
9. Yuhan Wang, RTW F/W25, creative dir. ": I don’t know how to describe this collection. Like slutty period clothing crossed with slutty American footballer? Whatever. As much as on paper I’ve made it sound like a weird choice of Halloween costume , it’s all very cunt.
10. Coperni, RTW F/W25, creative dir. Sébastien Meyer: I loved this collection. Cute but also a little (brace yourselves) edgy and also hot af. Actually really wearable too?
11. Danielle Frankel, RTW F/W25, creative dir. ": Another ethereal bridal collection from Danielle, one which this time round feels quite siren-esque. Loveee it!
12. Blumarine, RTW F/W25, creative dir. David Koma: Blumarine is so BACK! Everybody say thank you David Koma:-) The perfect man for the job, he has pulled off the impossible task of combining what Blumarine has become in the last decade with the original Blumarine aesthetic and to top it all off, with an infusion of his own signature flair too.
-clockwise l-r: Kim Shui RTW F/W25, McQueen ", Fetico ", Ann Demeulemeester "-
13. Kim Shui, RTW F/W25, creative dir. ": Whilst I love to see Kim Shui's usual vision shines through her latest collection, there's something about aspects of this collection that screams Hollywood Russian spy. Whilst that seems niche, think Jennifer Lawrence in Red Sparrow. It's that.
14. McQueen, RTW F/W25, creative dir. Seán McGirr: I saw a lot of people online trashing this collection but I really liked it. The reemergence of Elizabethan necklines is something I didn't know the modern fashion industry needed but having seen McGirr's use of them here, I hope more designers feel inclined to reference a more distant past than they're used too. Loveee the colour palette too.
15. Fetico, RTW F/W25, creative dir. Emi Funayama: If you crossed Wednesday Adams with an Upper East Side prep school teacher and a fashion magazine editor...here's your end product. I'm here for it.
16. Ann Demeulemeester, RTW F/W25, creative dir. Stefano Gallici: Since he was named creative director at Ann Demeulemeester, Stefano Gallici has taken the brand's core elements and transformed it into the aesthetic embodiment of Sandi Thom's song "I Wish I was a Punk Rocker" and that's 1000% a good thing.
-clockwise l-r: Chloé RTW F/W25, Zimmerman ", Ermanno Scervino ", Valentino "-
-Valentino Pre-fall 2025-
-Valentino Haute Couture S/S25-
17. Chloé, RTW F/W25, creative dir. Chemena Kamali: I’m just gonna say it: Chloé is my number one fashion house rn. It’s been 2 solid years of beautiful collections. Like since Chemena took over, there hasn’t been a single look anything short of breathtaking. Nobody's exactly inventing the wheel by doing the bohemian aesthetic but Chemena's work is so authentic and high quality that it feels less like a simple do-over and more like a rebirth for the 21st century.
18. Zimmerman, RTW F/W25, creative dir. Nicky Zimmerman: If it weren't for Chloé, I would probably say it's Zimmerman that's moved up to the top of my list. That being said, whilst the former just about takes it, Nicky's RTW F/W25 collection is gorgeous as ever. For the romantics who are a little rough around the edges, she's your woman.
19. Ermanno Scervino, RTW F/W25, creative dir. ": Ermanno Scervino never disappoints and this season wasn't an exception. Though Scervino is Italian, this collection feels distinctly French to me. Well, like a strong Italian-French combination. The dark romance, lace, corsets, blacks and nudes, feel like a tribute to the Isabella Rossellinis and Sophia Lorens of days past but bringing it all together is the kind of sophisticated power tailoring you'd expect to see some Parisian fashion magazine editor in. It's killllerrr<3
20. Valentino EVERYTHINGG, creative dir. Alessandro Michele: Look, Chemena Kamali may have push Alessandro off his pedestal for now but I still love his work at Valentino! It’s not necessarily the best work I've ever seen from him (considering the incredible last few years he had at Gucci) but he remains the king of decorative maximalism, and so even a mediocre collection is leaps and bounds ahead of a lot of designers. As he continues to find his feet at Valentino, I can't wait to see what he achieves; if anything, I hope it's most like his S/S25 Haute Couture collection because that's my favourite of the 3 this year so far.
-clockwise l-r: Miss Sohee Haute Couture S/S25, Jean Paul Gaultier Haute Couture S/S25, Nina Ricci RTW S/S25, Elie Saab Haute Couture S/S25-
21. Miss Sohee, Haute Couture S/S25, creative dir. Sohee Park: The beauty of this collection really just speaks for itself like omggg! These are the dresses fairytales are made of.
22. Jean Paul Gaultier, Haute Couture S/S25, creative dir. Ludovic de Saint Sernin: What Sohee Park's S/S25 does for those who wish (and can afford) to frolic around like a fairytale princess, Ludovic's JPG collection achieves for anyone who wants to float around feeling like a fallen angel. In succession the pieces read as the visual accompaniment to some kind of tragic romance, beautiful but also raw, dark, and...a little vengeful? It may seem ridiculous that I'm getting all that from like...clothes...but the best collections do tell a story and this reads like a couture accompaniment to the film Black Swan (as in the one with Natalie Portman/Mila Kunis, which happens to be one of my all time favourites) to me. I do have an overactive imagination though so...yeah. It would probably just suffice to say I love this and I think it's breathtaking beautiful but I love to waffle on so here we are!
23. Nina Ricci, RTW F/W25, creative dir. Harris Reed: Groovy, luxuriant and a little bit campy. All round, fabulous!
24. Elie Saab, Haute Couture S/S25, creative dir. ": If the Miss Sohee HC collection is an ode to the fairytale princess, and JPG a tribute to the fallen angel, then the Elie Saab HC S/S25 collection completes the HC fantasy trilogy by bringing straight up fairy vibes to the party.
-clockwise l-r: Marchesa RTW F/W25, Altuzarra ", Zuhair Murad Haute Couture S/S25, Gucci Pre-fall 2025, SRVC RTW F/W25, Gaurav Gupta Haute Couture S/S25-
-Gucci RTW F/W25-
26. Marchesa, RTW F/W25, creative dir. Georgina Chapman: This collection is gorgeous, like a more minimalist (as much as a brand like Marchesa can be), toned down version of the fairy vibe. Perhaps more sprite? Like the mythical creature obviously, not the drink, lol.
27. Altuzarra, RTW F/W25, creative dir. Joseph Altuzarra: Classy, wearable and elegant as always.
28. Zuhair Murad, Haute Couture S/S25, creative dir. ": Feels like an Old Hollywood glamour version of Elie Saab's fairy collection. None of the looks are subtle by any means but they are all head turning and in the best possible way, even when they veer a little into y2k valley girl prom territory.
29. Gucci, EVERYTHINGG, creative dir. Sabato De Sarno: Sabato De Sarno's reign at the helm of Gucci has been short and sweet and I'm super sad to see him go when I feel like he was just getting into the swing of things. I don't know what the general consensus is but I actually feel like he did an amazing job of returning Gucci to its roots whilst retaining Alessandro's unique flair, recognising just how crucial that flair was to reinvigorating the brand. Denma has a lot to live up to, think!
30. SRVC, RTW F/W25, creative dir. Ricky Wesley Harriott: It's happened. I've finally found a brand to fill the Ottolinger shaped hole in my heart. I used to loveee it but idk, it's lost its spark for me recently. Harriott's vision for SRVC has brought that spark back into my life! It's a weird combination of business casual, boyfriend's wardrobe, sex appeal and grunge that only a London-based designer (or formerly, a certain Berlin-based designer/s) could pull off and hopefully the brand continues to flourish.
Anyways, that's it for now! Won't ramble because I have a hugely rambly fashion update post coming soon where I'll do way too much of that. Plus the world is such a shit show atm I can't even reference current events without going into a rant. So that's that. Thanks for reading if you have!
Lauren x