We’ve been keeping a close eye on developments at Aquascutum, holding our collective breath last season when the business was sold. Six months on, the brand, in the safe hands of fashion businessman Harold Tillman, is transformed, and its show last night was a pleasure to behold. Thus far, London designers have been treading safely when it comes to making new statements for A/W 10. Not Michael Herz for Aquascutum. He went long, long, long in a colour palette of navy, grey and military green, alongside camel wool, gold jacquard and black leather. Think a long, tailored skirt with a white shirt and a short, belted jacket with flat, silver dance shoes. Or wide-leg trousers worn with a tiny, belted padded jacket, again with a white shirt. Throw in a cape, a long, slim, covered- up dress and a trench and you’ve got the collection in a nutshell. But it was Herz’s confidence that made this a show-stopper. “It was inspired by The French Lieutenant’s Woman,” he said, “and it was my conviction to carry on the long silhouette I started for S/S. It’s the way the girls walk, wearing long with flats. It just feels right.” And it did.
