London Fashion Week AW25 once again proved itself as a dynamic platform for both emerging and established designers, offering a lineup of collections that ranged from immersive storytelling to technical mastery. This season saw designers pushing boundaries—not just in aesthetics but in concept, casting, and sustainability discourse. From LUEDER’s medieval troll rave to Di Petsa’s poetic reflections on desire, each showcase reflected a unique vision of modern fashion, often nodding to history while remaining rooted in contemporary culture. As always, London Fashion Week delivered a mix of theatricality, craftsmanship, and cultural critique, making for a season that was as thought-provoking as it was visually compelling.
LUEDER
Taking to the English capital after presenting in Berlin two weeks ago, Marie Lueder stages a medieval troll rave in an immersive showcase of her AW25 collection.
If we were still in medieval times and you were a troll, would you have been a raver? If yes, Marie Lueder might have captured you and forced you to dance to Techno and Hardstyle for two hours straight at her AW25 showcase titled The Shell at the British Fashion Council’s NEWGEN Presentation space this past Friday at London Fashion Week. This rave came with encouraged photography and hilarious sound design. Imagine if Harry Potter got turnt. To avoid any misunderstandings: the models weren’t forced to be here, they actually seemed to be having a great time, constantly hydrating on beers, courtesy of LFW sponsor Blanc 1664.
LUEDER had the initial showing of her collection at Berlin Fashion Week two weeks prior, presented at Reference Studio’s third iteration of INTERVENTION, a showcase of young Berlin design talent. This is probably why she opted for an immersive showcase this time around. Admittedly, her vision wasn’t really translated in the sober showcase that was a pretty standard runway show at the Kant-Garagen in West-Berlin, with the rave showcase doing a much better job at contextualizing her collection and relaying the creative vision behind the clothes.
The choice to show in two places also comes from Marie’s love for different aspects of the two cities. “I think the landscape right now [in London] is more relevant than Berlin, but in Berlin, there's a lot of naivety and excitement.”
Lueder’s work also carries a sharp undercurrent social commentary. Her prints on tanks reading “Men are so BACK” and “Spirraling” (that’s not a typo) reflect the chaos of modern life. “It feels like a slap in the face,” she tells me, “It felt like we were making progress and everyone was doing their part…” Societal backslides aided by the new leading men of the most powerful countries of the world visibly annoy her. Her horror prints, as she calls them, are neither ironic or serious, and rather meant as a conversation starters.
DI PETSA
For their Autumn/Winter 2025 presentation, Di Petsa puts on an ethereal showcase of feminity and desire, with many references to greek mythology.
Di Petsa unveiled their AW25 collection at London Fashion Week’s NEWGEN space, continuing their journey as part of the British Fashion Council’s initiative supporting emerging talent. While honoring their signature wet-look draping, this season introduced heavier fabrics—vegan leather, velvet, and faux fur—adding a darker edge to their ethereal aesthetic, reminiscent of the marble statues of ancient Greece.
Titled Reflections of Desire, the collection explored archetypes of female desire, with each look embodying a distinct character. The most personal pieces included white trousers adorned with pink lipstick marks and Petsa’s own poetry printed onto A5-format fabric pieces, sewn together to form micro-skirts and underwired crop tops. Eros himself made an appearance in a corseted white blouse and trousers, angel wings, and a single red flower. Other notable moments were a vampire-fanged model with a smoking candleholder, a veiled bride walked down the aisle by five men in lace briefs, who would at some point get on the floor in reverence for the ethereal creature in white. A “brother-sister” duo wore matching pearl-netted skirts, with the male counterpart in a breastplate, carrying a pearl-encrusted sword.. Mia Khalifa walking the runway in a plunging brown robe with velvet appliqués was obviously designed to garner virality, though the true impact lay in the show’s diverse casting that reimagined female desire through the female gaze.
However, as Petsa expands beyond the signature wet-look pleating, the shift in structure and material raises questions about the brand’s long-term identity. As the BFC tightens its eco-regulations in partnership with Copenhagen Fashion Week, Di Petsa’s use of vegan leather and faux fur remains ambiguous, with past collections relying on conventional synthetics like polyester-based pleather. On inquiry their team was not able to tell me the material compositions in their fabrics and instead referred to their atelier in Athens. This opens them up to scrutiny regarding their commitment for better practices in the fashion industry. With sustainability requirements set to be fully enforced by 2026, it will be interesting to see if the brand’s creative merit will be overshadowed by their material choices.
DENZILPATRICK
Playing on medieval fantasies, the designer duo behind denzilpatrick reframes the modern racecar driver as a medieval knight, ready to take on London city life.
It was a wet but sunny Saturday morning at the Edith Neville primary school, where Denzilpatrick was set to showcase their AW25 collection at 12.00pm. In a show of considerate hospitality, the label and its PR had organized a coffee stand to supply audiences. It was the third day of London Fashion Week, so it is safe to assume that some of the fashion crowd’s enthusiasm was definitely curbing.
This enthusiasm, if even lost in the first place, was quickly rediscovered by the time the first model came onto the runway. Grey wool pants paired with a boxy puffer jacket and a double collar were paired with a tech-fleece balaclava of the same color and displayed from the jump impeccable skill at tailoring and interesting but elegant silhouettes. Other grey ensembles followed, which eventually gave way to a rusty brown, transitioning into dark green, then purple and ending on a regal red. James Bosley and Daniel Peter Gayle, the designer duo responsible, displayed impeccable tailoring for both more leisurely racetrack overalls and jackets as well as sharp suits and trench coats.
With the grey ensembles resembling chainmail and armor plates, the balaclavas mimicking bascinets and one model wearing a full breastplate, it is safe to say that they were going for medievalism. However, while employing some of the clichés the mind automatically wanders to when thinking about ‘The Medieval’, they manage to make their inspiration into something that feels contemporary and relevant. Drawing comparison between the jousting tournaments of knights then and racetrack drivers today, they pair modern silhouettes with the romanticism of the days gone by, without becoming overly fantastical.
Motorsport helmets, checkered patterns and modern fabrics leave no doubt to their relevance for the modern, urban man, who dreams of incorporating some medieval peacockery into his wardrobe through his own armor of suits, trench coats, puffer jackets and tech-fleece. Denzilpatrick successfully marries our yearning for the romanticised Middle Ages with the demands modern life makes of us.
SINÉAD O’DWYER
An impressively body-diverse cast presented Sinéad O’Dwyer’s AW25 collection at the 180 Studios NEWGEN Catwalk Space this London Fashion Week, challenging the fashion industry’s current regression on body diversity.
Sinéad O’Dwyer’s AW25 collection, Character Studies, is first and foremost a celebration. Going into its last year under the patronage of the BFC’s NEWGEN scheme, the brand reflects on its evolution over the past few years while honoring the characters that have shaped its identity. To quote from the show notes: “Unruly teenagers…, forlorn cello players, … maids and nannies, … submissives, … dungeon masters.”
The show featured some impeccable tailoring, leatherwork, squiggle knit and their signature criss-cross halter tops from deadstock nylon, as well as reiterations of the look in silk organza. The bubble-hem skirts came in long pencil skirts as well as mini versions, featuring layered suspenders. A short red trench coat shows original back detailing. A notable collaboration for this runway were the calf- and thigh-boots in collaboration with the Japanese footwear brand Grounds, they feature a bubble sole fused with a squiggle sock and front-lacing as a nod to traditional Irish dancing shoes.
With the fashion industry going back on its push for body diversity, O’Dwyer is one of the few designers sticking to body-inclusive casting, featuring a model in a wheelchair, other models with mobility impairments on her runway and plus-size models. The styling for these diverse bodies leaned heavily on leather micro-skirts, leotards, and revealing silhouettes, that occasionally were ill-fitted, felt more sexualizing than empowering.
While this is not a new phenomenon, it feels reductive to see the same kind of look on plus-size women only, with stylists and casting directors seemingly purposefully foregoing any efforts to present them in any other way. The sexualization of fuller figures in fashion is, of course, not exclusive to Sinéad O’Dwyer, yet, it poses the question of how these bodies are marginalized by the industry, even by those seeking to uplift them.
Despite the philosophical questions the showcase raises, it demonstrated O’Dwyer’s technical skills, from the tailored shirts, trench coats and blazers to the material work of organza layering and leatherwork. The collection was a celebration of Sinéad O’Dwyer’s past work as a young designer, seeing her now step into a new era of proving herself as a household name in London fashion.
YUHAN AO
A newcomer wows with an artistic showcase that feels a little too reminiscent of Galliano’s Margiela Artisanal 2024 collection.
Young Chinese designer Yuhan Ao was a surprising and refreshing highlight of the AW25 LFW schedule. The runway show titled The Untold Tale transported audiences straight to the streets of Paris, with artist Ze-Cheng Li’s photographs of Parisian life printed onto semi-translucent, tall, three-meter curtains of organza.
No doubt, the show took heavy inspiration from Maison Margiela’s AW2024 Artisanal presentation—right down to a knock-off Leon Damé. While the atmosphere and imagery were undeniably striking, creating a compelling context for the collection, they ultimately did not do the clothes justice. The deconstructed, sharply tailored, and meticulously considered pieces—though unmistakably influenced by Galliano-era Margiela— could have stood as original works in their own right. Yet, by hands of the overly inspired staging, they became little more than an homage to the French couture house.
That said, the collection held its ground, with the closing look eclipsing all expectations one might have for a small designer. A black satin-wool-blend overcoat with a distressed collar and cutout back revealed cascading layers of organza, with a crinoline hoop peeking out underneath—a strong finale, eclipsing all expectations one might have for a young designer like Ao.
Conclusion
With AW25 wrapped up, London Fashion Week once again cemented its reputation as a breeding ground for innovation and artistic exploration. Whether through Denzilpatrick’s medieval-meets-modern tailoring, Sinéad O’Dwyer’s continued push for body diversity, or Yuhan Ao’s striking—if familiar—take on deconstruction, this season’s collections sparked conversation and challenged conventions. As fashion’s future unfolds, the ideas presented this season will undoubtedly continue to shape dialogues around identity, craftsmanship, and the ever-evolving landscape of the industry.
