THE FAIRYTALE WORLD CALLED EDWIN OUDSHOORN

I almost tripped over a flowerbed wearing my plateau pumps, and then I realised I’d landed in Edwin Oudshoorn’s fairytale forest. On the last evening of the Mercedes Benz Fashion Week Amsterdam, the Dutch couturier showed his AW14/15 collection in the Transformatorhuis, which was garbed in twilight and decorated with plants, flowers, and other flora that turned it into an ‘artificial paradise’. The audience didn’t sit on a tribune, but behind cosy, little bistro tables on which a glass of champagne awaited them. ‘This is how every show should be,’ the front row agreed. 

His muse Laura Jansen opened the show from behind the piano in a white bridal gown from Edwin and performed her song Pretty me. Doll-like models showed a typically Edwin Oudshoorn collection that provoked many ‘oohs’ and ‘aahs’. We saw long, trailing evening dresses inlaid with Swarovski crystals and feathers. A couple of the dresses reminded me too much of Dancing With The Stars, but the majority was enchantingly beautiful. Especially because of the amazing craftsmanship that it exuded. We saw mini dresses with embroideries, and knee-length dresses that were beautifully cut. The harlequin collar flashed by. And like Chanel already showed us last week, the wasp waist is an important silhouette next season. Edwin created lovely silhouettes with his dresses, undeniably aided by killing corsets, but the result was to die for.

It was yet again a great pleasure to be taken on a journey to Edwin Oudshoorn’s fantasy world. I’m doing 100 sit-ups in the meantime, though.