Reliable classics and promising newcomers

Fashion week diary As New York Fashion Week comes to a chic close with Ralph Lauren and Oscar de la Renta, the style juggernaut rumbles on to London Fashion Week.

At New York Fashion Week, Ralph Lauren's evening looks were sprinkled with youthful accents.

As one of the last shows of New York Fashion week, Ralph Lauren always brings in a diverse yet influential crowd. There's Anna Wintour from American Vogue and Graydon Carter of Vanity Fair representing the power players of American publishing. Sarah Lerfel, the buyer from Colette in Paris, and Jefferson Hack, the editor of Dazed & Confused, represent the impossibly cool set. It shows how cleverly varied Lauren's offerings are.

Stevie Nicks's Sisters of the Moon set a bohemian vibe as it wafted through the Hudson Street venue. The first set of looks - long floral skirts, lean wool trousers, long cardigans, puff-sleeved plaid shirts and lush velvet (a fabric that's a big trend this season) jackets and dresses - seemed fitting items for his loyal customers, who want a touch of luxury without ostentation. Lauren then paraded more assertive and masculine looks with breeches-inspired trousers, tweed coats and pinstripe suits, which eventually segued into evening looks that were sprinkled with youthful accents. A sparkly embroidered dress was worn over a black turtleneck and leggings; a leopard-skin bolero jacket over a lace-skirted dress; embroidered tops with fingerless gloves and a series of gowns in velvet and floral print over lace tops accented with lace toques had a slight whiff of grunge.

When a brand has become a blockbuster like Lauren's, we don't expect it to move forward by forging a totally new aesthetic that's contrary to its traditions. It's about maintaining the brand ethos to retain its international customer base while introducing products to ease new customers into its orbit. And since he has built one of the most successful fashion empires, it's hard to argue against the effectiveness of his diversified aesthetic approach.

Blue-chip brands such as Calvin Klein and Oscar de la Renta are also faced with the same task. Francisco Costa, Calvin Klein's designer, did not veer far from the house's minimalist roots, but the Brazilian designer managed to experiment with voluptuous sleeves and hems and liquidy fabrics whose sheen appeared like moving ripples of water. If we were to go by the lavishness of de la Renta's latest outing, we could believe we were back in the 1980s, unaffected by the economy. There were fur accents on most wool coats, prim brocade skirt suits, grandiose fur hats and shawls, and unapologetically glamorous gowns that Alexis Carrington from Dynasty would have been proud of.

On Friday, London Fashion Week began with a one-minute silence in memory of the late Alexander McQueen. The week's first - though perhaps not the last - tears were shed for the designer the night before when the British models Naomi Campbell and Kate Moss wore outfits created by McQueen at a charity catwalk event organised by Campbell at Somerset House, the official headquarters of London Fashion Week. Moss collapsed in tears when the dress she wore was bought by the fashion tycoon Sir Philip Green for £100,000 (Dh568,000) in an auction.

Aside from a tribute wall in the entrance to the main show tent, where well-wishers can write messages of condolence, references to the most shocking event in recent fashion history remained low-key. On a positive note, the fashion shows kicked off fuelled by an exciting new initiative: a digital schedule with selected catwalk events is being streamed live online. By embracing new technology, London is not only seen as trailblazing but also gets its designers out there to the furthest corners of the globe.

Naturally, though, some of the must-see shows are for the fashion crowd only. Hakaan, a Turkish-born newcomer, pulled in a fantastically international crowd including Carine Roitfeld from French Vogue, the Dutch photographers Mert & Marcus and Moss. The American model Lara Stone led a bevy of curvaceous glamazons wearing tailored catsuits, extremely short skirts and sculptured, wide-shouldered jackets with nipped-in waists, which appeared to be inspired by the 1990s.

"For a first show this was very well done," said Roitfeld, clad in a copper Prada coat and signature high heels, afterwards. "I loved the way he had taken a decisive mood and chosen short hemlines. He has a great future." Later, the London-based Amr Ali, of the popular label Body Amr, showed his autumn/winter 2010 collection, which had the front two rows of Middle Eastern clients from Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait and UAE in raptures. Highlights included printed liquid lamé evening gowns encrusted with jet crystal.

"It's about making clothes for women to feel super-confident with their bodies," he said. His svelte draped clothes did indeed make his models look like Greek goddesses. It's too early, perhaps, to start defining London trends, although there does appear to be a return to 1990s razor-sharp tailoring along with a softer, draped line. David Koma and Hannah Marshall fell into the first camp, while Natascha Stolle, a young designer who has created the first women's range for the trendy label and menswear shop B-Store, offered a sublime case for the alternative.