Editor Sahir Ahmed and stylist Marissa Baklayan report back from London.
Friday, September 13
10:35am Waking up in The London EDITION, the first thing that came to mind was the room service from the night before. Caesar salads, mac & cheese, chicken noodle soup, and peppermint tea materialized like a dream before our droopy eyes. London, crisp and cold, greeted us like the early days of a New York winter.
Our first show of the day is Di Petsa, and we’re already late. Knowing shows tend to start at least 15 minutes late, we're hopeful as we get into our car. Outside, a man eager for his photo op waves Marissa down for a selfie before someone from the PR team urges us inside.
We enter just as the lights dimmed for the show to start, and with our seats too far into the corner, we decide to stay at the entrance, steering clear of judgmental gazes from the front row.
Fashion is a fantasy, defined by how well the illusion holds. Designer Dimitra Petsa looks to ancient myths for hers. Rather than go the quiet luxury route of subtle, yet expensive details like cashmere inside the pocket of a dress, Petsa’s fantasy virtually drips down the runway. SS25 tells the Greek tragedy of Ariadne and the Minotaur. Flowy drapery recalls the “Wet Look” dresses of her SS20 collection.
Being late to a show has its pros — watching from the entrance means being one of the first to exit. Avoiding the queue, we head back to The Edition for a work session and brunch.
1:21pm Ancuta Sarca brings us back to 180 Strand. Outside, a crowd of protestors swarms the entrance with signs that read: “Fashion represents us all!”; “Beauty has no boundaries.”; “Love all shapes, all sizes” — among other things.
2:33pm I ruminate on the collared silver pumps and the protestors on our way to Yuhan Wang.
There, we obsess over the boxing gloves, this season being inspired by female fighters from around the world. Wang mixes lace, silk, and leather with the same prowess with which she marries the feminine and the masculine.
4:45pm We stop by a pub before Puppets & Puppets and head there after a pint.
A favorite of New York’s downtown scene, in February designer Carly Mark announced a pivot — from ready-to-wear to accessories — and a move — from the New York Fashion Week circuit to London’s. A practical decision, with Mark citing the cost of producing full collections not aligning with her community’s ability to afford them. By focusing on bags, Mark is playing it smart, recognizing the brand’s strengths, and paring back as she figures out what this next chapter might mean. The presentation felt more like a performance piece than a fashion show, and for a designer who started as a fine artist, that makes perfect sense. Not only smart, it seems Mark is having fun again.
7:05pm We head out to our last show of the day, Natasha Zinko. Styled by Betsy Johnson, the show felt like an eerie reflection of our collective obsession with all things plastic. After the show, we ran into musician Brooke Candy, who described the collection as “psych ward meets plastic surgery.” Candy proves herself a sage.
8:03pm Should we stay for the afters? We pause for a moment and look around, staring blankly at the frantic crowd jostling for vodka sodas at the bar. No…
We head to the hotel for a nightcap and our beds.
Saturday, September 14
12:24pm The pigeons must chirp louder in New York, or these walls are really that thick. We sleep in until noon — partly jet-lagged, but mostly drained after yesterday’s marathon of shows. We start the day slowly, lounging at The Edition’s Berners Tavern, before heading out for Nensi Dojaka that evening, our first and only show of the day. The most A-list front row we’ve seen so far. We see British actress Simone Ashley, poet-model Kai Isaiah Jamal, and former i-D editorial director Olivia J. Singer sporting a charm-maxed Miu Miu bag.
Dojaka is a genius with form and feminine sensibility — how the clothes hug the body. And the tights? Fab.
8:53pm After lingering at the cocktail party for a moment, we head to The Face’s fashion week party, where I log off. Until tomorrow!
Sunday, September 15
1:13pm Today feels like a Saturday. Our first show of the day is the whimsical Simone Rocha whose SS25 show is taking place at the Old Bailey, England’s central criminal court.
The show was the most romantic we’ve seen so far, like flipping through a book of fairytales. Oversized tulle bags and voluminous skirts, ruffles, sparkles, and crystal embellishments — all with Rocha’s signature.
6:35pm KNWLS casting was perfect. Mar loved the fascinators, which felt like a modern, avant-garde nod to headpieces from the 30s and 60s. Designers Charlotte Knowles and Alexander Arsenault have clearly found their groove.
8:36pm Now what? London’s fashion week parties are sparse, unlike New York where two or three potentially okay parties share the same night.
In the end, we settle on another early night at The Edition (yes, we do just love it that much).
Monday, September 16
11:46am We wake up with Ashley Williams on our minds. I order a car for what turns out to be a three-minute ride. “You know it’s just around the corner, right?” our driver turns to me and says. “Yes,” I reply, unashamed of not checking before ordering. “It’s a better way to show up anyway.”
We see musician Harmony Tividad outside in the cutest Ashley Williams look, serving her best take on "office siren." Mar stops to take a photo.
The show was about growing up — how strange it feels when your perspective shifts and the things you once thought you understood become foreign. Models appeared as if thrown out of a time machine from the 2010s, with slowed-down versions of songs like Miley Cyrus’ “The Climb” eerily soundtracking the scene. Each look captured the uneasy transition from adolescence to adulthood, where milestones slip out of reach, and the promises of maturity begin to fade.
At Burberry, Daniel Lee brought together outerwear, eveningwear and casualwear, which ironically felt very New York. Who wouldn't want an outfit that can carry you from your 9-to-5 to the office cocktail hour in the dead of winter?
6:02pm After, we treat ourselves to an end-of-the-week dinner at The Edition’s Berners Tavern. Tuna Tartare with a punchy wasabi dressing, Galician octopus with smoky chorizo sauce, to-die-for mac & cheese, and Rib-Eyes, seared and served with Béarnaise sauce, and too many glasses of wine selected by the Berners’ in-house sommelier. It's safe to say that after dinner we're feeling ready for Mowalola.
The FOMO that’d come with missing the show was enough to get us dressed and out the door. We see stylist Betsy Johnson and friends and squeeze in next to her as the show is meant to start. It starts an hour later, voices whispering that the hold-up is, of course, Ye and Bianca, notorious for being the last ones in. They never show.
As the show unfolds, Mowalola parades around the dark space with a microphone in hand — not for dramatic effect, but singing! While debuting unreleased tracks, models stream into the space as videographers and photographers move around them. The show felt more like watching the making of a music video than a fashion week presentation. As always, the show radiated heat, centering Blackness with bold statements like latex tube dresses emblazoned with "EBONY," an abundance of miniskirts, and cropped fur coats that I can only dream of stepping out in.
Tuesday, September 17
London Fashion Week had a similar energy to New York’s, albeit with a quarter of the parties. What felt most familiar was the sheer abundance of new talent that defined the week — from Fashion East’s Johanna Parv, Olly Shinder, and Samara Scott to CSM alum Aaron Esh. At its heart, this season was about storytelling.
Each designer this week created a different fantasy. Ashley Williams' nostalgic take on adolescence captured the emotional volatility of growing up, while Di Petsa reached further back, weaving a mythic world rooted in Ancient Greece. Nensi Dojaka presented a hyper-feminine, sensual fantasy, while Natasha Zinko pulled us into a chillingly familiar plastic reality. Burberry offered a more modern tale, where eveningwear, outerwear, and casual wear blended to create a new kind of practicality.
In every case, London’s designers constructed worlds of their own.
How did you first meet Willy?
In Paris, in June, during fashion week this year. It was at a private Adidas event actually. I should have known then that something big was in the works. I love his work and we have mutual friends, so I just went up and introduced myself. He was exactly how he is: himself and real. Very humble, respectful and helpful.
How did you go from meeting him in Paris in June to walking in his show in September?
Willy invited me to his studio when we first met in Paris. Pretty soon after, I came to New York to film (a skate video) for my friend Ben’s brand, Grand and he’s good friends with Willy. So we both went to Willy’s studio together. We brought Willy his favorite cookies and a Grand jacket as gifts for him. He was so hyped. We were supposed to be there like 20 minutes but ended up all talking for two hours. As the two hours passed, before we got ready to leave, Willy told me he’d really like for me to walk his show. It was a dream come true. I hit up adidas and they helped me come back for the show and made sure I was here days early for fittings and anything else needed.
What was the experience like to walk in your first show? Were you nervous?
It was truly an honored moment for me. Not only loving what Willy creates, but also the meaning behind this collection and show. So grateful to be a part of such a meaningful moment. The show started at 7pm, but models had to arrive at 1:30pm for make-up and doing photos. It was sick to see how the whole process works and meet so many cool people backstage. When it came time to walk, I wasn’t nervous at all, all my nerves were full of joy and ready to walk. There was direction on stance and walk and what they wanted us to do. Other than that, I was looking straight ahead, locked in. No eye contact.
What did you think about your look?
I loved it. It’s everything I would personally buy and wear. White hoodie with Willy Chavarria written in old English arched across the chest, 3 stripes detail hit on the hood. White track jacket with royal blue accents. White track bottoms that zip off into long shorts with unique patterns. It’s the baggy silhouettes of the pieces that makes them fit so comfortable and unique. You have to wear and touch the pieces to see how special they really are. The whole collection is special.
What does it mean to you to be in Willy’s show? Also with the adidas tie in?
Huge, huge honor to be a part of it. I’m Mexican. Willy is Mexican. You never see a Mexican designer get to the level Willy has. And no matter how big he gets, he still celebrates us and all of humanity. It’s amazing to see him get so much love and support. He deserves it all. He’s worked so hard for so long. It’s such a blessing to walk in his show period. Then add in adidas, who has supported me for so many years. It’s just blessings on blessings. So grateful.
What else did you do while in New York during Fashion Week?
Skated, filmed, hung out with friends, explored, ate good food. All the good things you do when you’re in New York. Just be outside.
What’s next after this trip?
Keep the momentum going. Headed on a domestic adidas trip right from New York, then Shanghai with adidas, then Tokyo with Grand in October. Skate more, drop more videos, go on more trips, make more designs. Stay locked in on the things I envision and accomplish them.
Hi, Gabe! The show was so amazing.
Thanks for being there!
Of course. Let’s go in reverse chronological order. What’ve you been up to since your show?
After the show I went to Fire Island. With Timothy Gibbons, who helped design the collection, to take a breather. Now I’m back and feeling stressed again. It’s market week. But I’m still feeling good.
How was your party? A lot of NYFW parties are kind of boring — they can feel like air coming out of a balloon slowly. But your party was cute — a real family affair!
It felt really good. My uncle has a soda brand called Gus, so he sponsored the party and I got to design drinks with his soda. It felt close to home.
As a designer, do you do other things during New York Fashion Week — go to other shows, parties — or are you really locked in on your show?
Just locked in. I really wanted to go to Gauntlett Cheng’s show — I used to work with them. They came to mine, which was really nice.
If you squint, you can sort of see some fashion family trees in lineages in the New York fashion world — you worked for Esther and Jenny at Gauntlett Cheng, they worked for Mike and Zoe at Eckhaus Latta. And I think Mike and Zoe worked at ThreeASFOUR. There’s an arc there. A DNA centered on knitwear, a fidelity to geometry.
That lineage is real. And Zoe Latta and Mike Eckhaus went to RISD. And Jenny Cheng went to RISD. I worked for Gauntlett Cheng while I was in school. I also went to RISD. And every summer I have interns from RISD who work on my collection. It’s like a real community.
RISD mafia!
Yeah. And Ben Doctor, too. He went to RISD.
This being your first show, were there any veterans or industry insiders who helped guide you through the process?
The photographer who shot my first looks helped. Michael Hauptman. He’s been in fashion for a while and shot first looks at many shows. He knows how the whole thing goes. It was nice having his eye and input throughout. It was a first for a lot of people though. It was Iman Said’s first show styling.
Yeah, Iman is so cool.
Yeah. It was her first time styling a show by herself. And Shay Gallagher — it was her first time producing a show. Gus Grossman who did the art direction, it was his first time art directing a show and doing the graphic design around the show. It was a new, fun experience for everyone.
I feel really inspired looking at your clothes. The first time I photographed them was with my friend Lauren. There’s a lot of sub-surface sexual appeal to your clothing. Can you explain how you view the relationship between clothing and sexual appeal?
I have a weird relationship with menswear as a male designer. It’s hard for me. I get in my head. "What would I wear?" So I gravitate towards making womenswear from the start. My work started as this form of catharsis. I started making knitwear after my dad passed away. I was interested in how cloth holds traces of history. From the start, I’ve gotten feedback about how the work is sexy. That wasn’t always the goal. It’s not what I’m thinking about when I’m making the clothes. The sexiness comes from anxiety from dressing. One of the big references is horror movies. The final girl in a horror movie being chased by the antagonist. Her clothes tearing off. It comes off as sexy. But it’s more rooted in feelings of anxiety.
That sort of horror is so carnal.
Yes! But I love the way it has evolved. I don’t know how my audience or the customers see the clothes. But the clothing evolves [on figure]. Each customer has their own experience with my clothing, which I really like.
The personality of the wearer really shines through your clothing. Does producing a show psychically change your attitude or process towards making clothing?
Yeah. I’ve had a lot of roadblocks. Having a business. Not knowing how things work. Last year I felt really disconnected and pessimistic from the whole experience of having my own label. But what has excited me is this idea of world-building through the clothes. That’s why I want to design. I want to think about characters and the world in which they exist. The runway is the ultimate way of displaying that, showing it to my audience. With lookbooks I can do that. But being in person with an audience — it can be a whole experience, with music and perfume. It's made me really excited to keep going.
What are some fashion references that are eternal for you?
This season I was inspired by a lot of Alexander McQueen’s collections between 2000-2004. There was one collection and the story was about a shipwreck. I loved the really direct form of storytelling through that collection. It’s what he was amazing at doing.
Tell me about ‘Horseplay’.
Yes. I took the fall/winter 2024 season off. I sell at a few stores in Australia. I needed a break from making new stuff. I was feeling disconnected. I went to Australia for some pop-ups for two months. I got this book about Australian ferns. I was obsessed with the illustrations of the ferns.
I was researching these jocks called Sharpies that were big in the 1970s. With my work I’m always interested in this nostalgic Americana, which is very present where I’m from. I was really excited by these jocks and the clothes they wore. They were tight, striped knits. Something about it was so homoerotic. Part of Australia reminded me of the equestrian farmland I grew up near. I thought it would be so cool if I created a story where the protagonist is in this world of horse girls and jocks.
In my head, I created this story about this boy who had a nightmare that he’s in a competition amongst these really sexy, cool girls. Like the girls at my high school I looked up too. Then the boy falls off his horse into a fern bush. It is nighttime. He’s pulled out of the ferns by these jocks who haze him and have him kill off the horse girls to win a prize. That story came to me in five minutes. That’s how I work. Really impulsively.
Your process seems instinct-driven.
Yes. That’s the horseplay idea. It’s interesting you bring up the sexiness of the clothes. I did lean into sexiness in this collection. The horse girl being a sex icon. I keep referencing or thinking about this one hot babysitter I had. Having her be an icon as a gay kid. These horse girls are the hot babysitter or my sister's hot older friends [laughs]. It was also fun designing the menswear. Different vintage sportswear. The first shorts I worked on with Timothy were inspired by vintage football shorts. Super high waisted. There’s something very gay about them. We decided to make them out of fur. When clothes are made out of knits, it turns them homoerotic.
In your clothing, there is an allusion to it being taken off.
Totally. That’s always been present. The first knits I made were about layering and thinking about taking layers off as well as feeling comfortable in what you're wearing.
