Season after season, Central Saint Martins alumni Stefan Cook and Jake Burt are among the most anticipated designers to present at London Fashion Week. The eponymous brand – Stephane Cook – grew out of Lulu Kennedy’s Fashion Orient, and was soon hailed as a brand to watch, especially after being named a finalist for the 2019 LVMH Prize. At Fashion Week glitterati, Stefan Cooke celebrates schoolboy-ish themes and a nod to traditional menswear. Ahead of his London Fashion Week show, Hypebeast spoke to the duo, who were excited about Raf Simons’ now-debut debut at the time: “We definitely feel good about the LFW lineup in September, especially since Raf Simons’ collections are mainly menswear. Adding weight to the strong designer line-up for LFW will re-establish London as the home of the avant-garde.
However, they don’t seem like Simmons, who Stephen Cook actually described as a “strong designer.” For SS23, the boys kicked things off with a bang, playing on loop, as they welcomed showgoers to the Old Selfridges Hotel – often a regular and must-see spot for both London Fashion Week, for which Stefan Cook is eligible for each.
As the models entered the runway, information from the South Western Railway Transport Service was played loudly. It’s vocally stimulating and enough to make a few audience members cringe. However, the dress was no laughing matter. Stephen Cook has always had a masterful eye for bending the rules and then rewriting them. Jorts were seen in green dyed washes, floor length denim skirts and 360 degree denim hemming running vertically from the midriff to the leg.
Common symbols like skirts are applied to knitted wool cardigans, sequins add sparkle to kitsch t-shirts (including one with a jack-o-lantern), and baker’s hats from past seasons now adorn tight jackets.
Completing the above were a number of Canadian tuxedos used in alternative colors, including purple, reversed with the aforementioned dresses. However, the kids seem to be focused on the consumer side of their brand, being accessories. Bags sported the signature diamond motif on last season’s sweaters, a theme repeated on a white bomber jacket with a diamond-cut silhouette. Completing this year’s collection were shoes that completed the Stephen Cook charge.
Check out the SS23 collection from Stefan Cook above and find more London Fashion Week SS23 content across Hypebeast and on our new Instagram channel @HypebeastUK.
A menswear must-have, look to the scene for Simon Rocha’s SS23 look.
