“They were all really funny, fresh characters,” he says. “My Auntie Agnes is in her sixties and still wears leather miniskirts.” At school, it was the same story. “My art teacher, Mrs Braun, was really encouraging to me and my sister. She was really forward-thinking and encouraged us to go for it.”
Now 23, Kane’s life has changed beyond all recognition. With Braun’s encouragement, he won a place to study fashion at the prestigious Central St Martins College of Art & Design in London. The top student in his year, he graduated in February and went into partnership with his sister Tammy. He lives in London, travels to Milan to work for Versace twice a month and is on first-name terms with fashion royalty, from the editor of American Vogue, Anna Wintour, to Kylie Minogue.
The cast list of his life is, however, just the same. At his debut catwalk show, one of the most anticipated events of London Fashion Week, Tammy will be behind the scenes, busy with the pins. Braun and his mum will be watching from the gold seats, although they are leaving the best places free for Wintour et al. “I would love my mum to sit in the front row,” says Kane. “But she won’t. She’s too modest.”
It seems to run in the family. In conversation, Kane is happy to defer to his sister, and Tammy chips in whenever her brother needs prompting.
Six months in, his career has the trajectory of a Christian Louboutin stiletto. His award-winning degree show alerted the cognoscenti to a huge new talent. Donatella Versace signed him up as a consultant.
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Sarah Mower, a contributing editor to American Vogue, says: “It’s been a long time since I’ve seen a British designer whose work both scares and thrills me.” She introduced Kane to her boss, who, despite her nickname Nuclear Wintour, pronounced Kane “lovely, wild and charming”. She also said that he reminded her of the late Gianni Versace.
Kylie’s stylist was another early Kane admirer. On his recommendation, she bought four of his dresses. The Superman actress Kate Bosworth was photographed in one for Harper’s Bazaar magazine. Those images in turn caught the eye of the model Sophie Dahl, who e-mailed Kane to ask if she could wear the dress to a party in New York. Harrods even put his work in its window, which Kane found so unbelievable that he had a fit of the giggles.
So what is it about Kane’s frocks that has everyone frothing? He describes them as the next step on from the high-octane Hollywood look. “This is new, younger glamour with great details on the clothes, making much more use of a simple silhouette.” His trademark trims are lace, fitted together in an intricate jigsaw pattern, with brass rings and Swarovski crystals. “I am a bit of a magpie, but I don’t do it in the typical way. It’s quite beautiful and you can’t get away from it being sparkly.”
His bold use of colour and detailing on a body- conscious canvas has led to comparisons with 1990s Versace and the king of cling, Azzedine Alaïa. These frocks are distinctive, memorable and paparazzi friendly — perfect for today’s look-at-me celebrity culture.
“They are party dresses. Everyone can do a black dress, but I think what I’ve found is something different. I’m brave in the sense that I will put another frill on it but keep it really tight to the body. I feel pleased that I have come up with a nice little formula.” He giggles. “Then again, for my new show there’s something added so people won’t tire of it. They won’t think I’m a one-hit wonder, because I’m not.”
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Kane’s dresses balance on the knife-edge between fabulous and far too much. He knows this, and relies on Tammy to make sure that he keeps his crystal habit under control. “It could go wrong, but I’ve formulated it in a way that keeps it together. My sister tries them on, right up to the show. We can be really ruthless, edit out any details that are not working.”
Male fashion designers are often criticised for making outfits that are wildly unwearable and Kane admits that, at the moment, he is not concerned about comfort, practicality and whether or not it’s possible to walk in his outfits.
“At the moment we don’t really care about that, we just want it to look amazing,” he says. “It is my debut and everyone needs to say, that dress is beautiful, who cares if you can’t sit down? It can be broken down into other pieces for more practical wearability.”
Kane’s first collection — tweaked and possible to move in — will be on sale in Harrods and Browns (a London fashion store). Buyers from all around the world have shown an interest, but he is determined not to overstretch himself. He seems so level-headed you have to pinch yourself to remember that he is just a young graduate. While his peers are still sipping cappuccinos wondering what to do next, he is thinking in the long term. Although his sparkly party dresses are the antithesis of the sulky, eccentric outfits associated with London Fashion Week, he sees this as an advantage rather than a drawback. “London’s great, it’s where it’s at at the moment. I stand out among the other designers who aren’t doing glamour in a young, upbeat, modern way.”
As well as his own collection and his Versace work, Kane is designing a 10-piece collection for Topshop. But although he runs up his own T-shirts, he has no interest in making clothes for men. He is not even very interested in making clothes for women when they are off the red carpet.
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“Women’s wear is where you can really play and experiment and have fun,” he says firmly. So the Kane sport range is not on the cards? He laughs. “Oh no, tracksuits will never happen.”