JW Anderson astounds us once again on Saturday, February 17th with his Fall / Winter 2018 collection at London Fashion week.

"I want to reconfigure the entire way we do things. It doesn't make sense to develop small collections. It's time to pare back and start again." Explained JW Anderson, after the announcement that as of this show, he will be uniting his women's and men's collections and will be presenting them together twice a year with six product drops throughout the year.

The magical mix of men's and women's together on the runway absolutely charmed. The collection was very at-ease, with loose fitting and oversized garments comfortably draping across the models' bodies. From ruffled blouses and pleated, silk dresses for women, to knitted crewnecks and leather trousers for men, to trench coats for both men's snd women's - the collection thrived as the colours ranged from khaki and cream neutrals, to pops of multicoloured patterns.

Potentially military or camping inspired, the somewhat outdoorsy vibes the collection gave off is the perfect statement to not take fashion too seriously - to have fun with it. Which is exactly what JW Anderson did. The flawless balance of subtle elegance and edge, the "less is more" notion so perfectly depicted - the collection flourished, effortlessly.

Fluttery layers, crinkled fabrics, swingy handkerchief hemlines, ruffled bottoms, and bunny ears sewn onto sweatshirts were just a few details seen on the runway. From flowy, pleated skirts and dresses paired with loose fitting tunics or tank tops, finished with a chunky black boot, to a hooded, ribbed jumper with puffy sleeve detailing paired with wide, beige culottes, finished with an army-green sneaker, the women's collection had hints of femininity contrasting masculinity.

"We need to go forward in an optimistic way, to change things, to make them exciting again. We're finding that a lot of women are buying men's, and vice-versa, and for me it was about how do we uniform everything, tighten it up together" said JW Anderson backstage after the show. Optimistic for a soon-coming change in fashion and the industry, JW Anderson took a step towards gender neutrality and the notion that clothes are meant to be playful and not taken too seriously - and of course, he's right.

By: Isabel de Carteret