LFW? It’s as easy as A Z

F is for Fashion Fringe

Not an ode to nose-skimming hair, but a Ken Livingstone-supported competition to find London’s newest design talents. Plus this year Tom Ford is a judge. Previous winners include Basso and Brooke and Erdem.

G is for Goody bags

London Fashion Week might not have the glitziest reputation of the four capitals, but the goody bags are more bursting than those of any other city. Bluetooth headsets, GameBoys and vouchers for spa treatments are some of the treats that have been placed on front-row seats.

H is for Heels

You think people wear flats during fashion week? They’re as rare as Krispy Kremes. It’s about heels, heels and more heels. Prepare to totter in Rupert Sanderson claret killers and Christian Louboutin patent peep toes.

I is for Iris

For all your fashion week footwear needs, head to Iris in Brompton Cross (020-7584 1252). The new shoe boutique from Joseph is just steps away from LFW’s South Kensington nerve centre. Get there fast for the best footwear from Marc Jacobs, Alaïa, Prada and Chloé.

J is for Jeans

Wearing a pin-thin pencil skirt to LFW might sound glamorous, but when you consider the hours spent hanging around and all the cross-London commuting (designers like to take you to the farthest possible postcodes) most showgoers stick to jeans. Skinny, boyfriend and straight leg are the holy trinity this season.

K is for Kindergarten

Our favourites among the babies of LFW (those showing for the first time) are Louise Goldin, with her elaborate knitwear, and Todd Lynn , who has designed for the Rolling Stones and U2. Achtung baby!

L is for Leggings, Layering and Leopard print

No, not a back catalogue of Su Pollard’s fashion crimes but the three strongest trends to hit fashion week. Expect a small army of black footless tights, piles of chunky knits and more leopard than you’d find in the Serengeti.

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M is for Models

With the announcement that M&S is forking out £100,000 to secure top names this season, the catwalk shows promise to be slicker than ever. The line-up includes Erin O’Connor (for her My Life in Fashion interview, go to timesonline.co.uk/fashion) as well as Lily Cole, Tania D and Vlada from Hermès.

N is for Nationality

LFW has an impressively multi.cultural mix of designers. Many are established in their native countries, but come here to make their names internationally. Countries represented this year include Serbia (Roksanda Ilincic); India (Manish Arora); Lebanon (Garen Demerdjian, designer for Gardem) and Greece/Austria (Marios Schwab.

O is for Organic

You’ve been to the farmers’ market to pick up your autumn veg; now all you need is an organic outfit to match. This season, the LFW exhibition boasts its new Estethica division. Showcasing eco-sustainable labels and designers who work with organic fabrics, this is one for the conscience. Katharine Hamnett, Beyond Skin and Noir are all included.

P is for Parties

The highlight of last year’s parties was watching Julien Macdonald and Paris Hilton dirty-dance together (what do you mean, that’s not a highlight?). This year’s hottest parties include Armani, the PPQ store launch (despite Peaches Geldof doing the DJ-ing), Gina (Victoria Beckham is on the guest list) and Biba. And it’s bondage gear at the ready for Gareth Pugh’s party with ID magazine.

Q is for Queueing

No fashion show is complete without a) a lengthy delay; b) a scuffle for seats; and c) a queue longer than Posh’s discarded hair extensions. The only consolation? Queues provide prime people-watching time.

R is for Rants

You don’t think the fashion pack actually discusses the clothes, do you? No, the catwalk chatter is all about how far apart the venues are, how the bizarrely attired editor of an obscure Hoxton fashion fanzine has stolen your seat, how stale the on-site sandwiches are, and how late the shows run; especially when they are organised around what time the right celebrities (or in the case of last year’s Giles show, Anna Wintour) deign to arrive.

S is for Stuart Rose

The dapper CEO of Marks & Spencer has also been chairman of the British Fashion Council for the past three years. Not only was he behind the move to hire Hilary Riva, the former managing director at Rubicon, to make LFW more business savvy and elevate its profile globally, but he has also set up the Fashion Forward initiative, which offers rising designers business advice and financial support.



T is for Tom Ford

When he comes to town, you know London Fashion Week is getting more glamorous. The impeccably turned-out style guru will no doubt cause a frenzy of pap-led pics as a judge at Fashion Fringe, but is there any substance behind the gloss? Since his dramatic departure from Gucci, he’s come up with sunglasses and Estée Lauder bronzers. Let’s see if he can work his Midas touch on LFW’s newcomers.

U is for Unique

Armani who? For some dedicated followers of fashion, the most exciting show of the week will be Topshop Unique. It’s cheap, the clothes are (shhh!) a lot nicer than many other designers’ creations, and this year it’s serving high tea and bellinis.

V is for Venues

Everything you may have heard about those bizarre catwalk locations is true. Shows taking place in grubby East End garages? Damn right. In eerie church crypts? Goodness, of course. At the delightful Orangery at Kensington Palace? Why, darling, it’s practically de rigueur.

W is for London Fashion Weekend

Visit this event at South Kensington from September 27 to October 1 and you can pick up reduced items from 100 LFW designers, including Betty Jackson and Bill Amberg. See londonfashionweekend.co.uk for details. To win a free ticket,

enter our competition see below.

X is for Xtreme fashion

London Fashion Week is notorious for offbeat designs with a healthy dose of shock factor. And no ones startles quite like Gareth Pugh. Purveyor of all things abstract and inflated (see left), he set an outlandish standard last season, and we hear that things are getting more radical. Not one for traditionalists.

Y is for Osman Yousefzada

After two successful collections and sponsorship from Saab, this Cambridge graduate banker-turned- designer returns with a collection that is inspired by the Tudors. Combining sensuous draping with luxurious fabrics to produce a killer silhouette, there’s no shortage of drama. Now what could be sexier than a hint of a heaving bosom?

Z is for Zandra Rhodes

Rainbow-hued fashion eccentric Zandra Rhodes will be showing for the first time in 20 years, and has collaborated with MAC on a new make-up range. Expect fluorescent pink and psychedelic patterns to be the new black (visit timesonline.co.uk/fashion to read Zandra’s My Life in Fashion interview).

Competition



We have ten London Fashion Weekend tickets for Friday, September 29.

To win one, answer the following question:



Which LA heiress made an appearance on the catwalk at Julien Macdonald in February?



Send your answer and contact details (telephone number, e-mail address) to: London Fashion Weekend, times2, 1 Pennington Street, London E98 1TT. Entries to be received by Friday, September 22. This is a free entry competition. The Editor’s decision is final.