Youthful optimism hits London Fashion Week catwalk

Youthful optimism hit the London Fashion Week catwalk when the designer Jessica Ogden sent out a cheery collection of checked painter's smocks and patchwork skirts in poster paint colours, worn with knitted berets.

Those hats were the most obvious symbol of Ogden's Parisian theme in her autumn/winter 2005 which was inspired, she said, by her own grandmother's life in that city in the 1920s when she and her twin sister danced at the Folies Bergeres.

"This is my idea of what their wardrobe might have been, when they went out to buy their vegetables, when they were being artists' muses. I imagined what I would wear if I was hanging out in a cafe with Rodin," said Ogden backstage after her show.

Ogden, who was born in Jamaica but whose studio is based in London, launched her own label in 1993 following a stint recycling old clothes for Oxfam. Her now-trademark naive style has been imitated by many a better-known fashion brand, a common experience for young independent designers.

For next season, Ogden's full and girlish skirts in denim and corduroy patchworks were all part of a bohemian yet fresh feel, as were short caftans with a bold geometric applique inspired by Kandinsky.

In a pretty faded pink patchwork cape there was also a nod to Ogden's signature technique, the use of antique fabrics and hand-me-downs to create new pieces of clothing.

In this impressive collection, one of the strongest of London fashion week so far, Ogden also picked up on several emerging trends for the forthcoming autumn/winter season, including sailor's trousers, brightly coloured socks and bows tied at the neck. Her show's overall mood of youthful verve and multicolour was emphasised by models who were instructed to smile rather than pout, against a backdrop of fairy lights and a clear blue sky.

- INDEPENDENT