London has often been thought of as the undersung little sister of the fashion week calendar, the upstart with the endlessly youthful energy. That vigor and audacity were no less apparent for Fall 2013, although The Last Magazine fashion director Alastair McKimm’s top ten looks from the week show that the foggy city may no longer be able to lay claim to underdog status. Luxury powerhouse PPR announced the acquisition of a majority stake in London favorite Christopher Kane back in January, and it was refreshing to see that the label’s new corporate backing did not prevent Kane from producing a winningly eclectic show of textures, camouflage prints, and intricate cutout detailing that started from the esoteric inspiration of a glowing MRI of a human brain. Mary Katrantzou, a genius with prints, worked her customarily ornate images into more sculptural shapes that contrasted sharp corners with Romantic curves. Giles Deacon went for full-blown Romanticism, with a collection that glowed with pale colors and burnished gold, and played off a flowing long silhouette and the ethereal otherworldliness of Kristen McMenamy’s opening gown. JW Anderson may be the best exemplar of what could be thought of as the New London School, a designer unafraid of pushing the boundaries and forcing us to question our æsthetics, but one who acts out of a sense of integrity rather than a desire for facile shocks—his latest pieces had a purity and coherence even as they veered from nuns’ habits to hospital dressing gowns and back again. Another major story out of London was unconventional materials, an innovative theme Christopher Bailey used to refresh the classic Burberry trench with the flat sheen of translucent latex as part of a provocatively sexy vision. The duo behind Meadham Kirchhoff approached the idea from the other direction, with maids’ uniforms and ruffled dresses accented with black vinyl that suggested the darker side of desire. Eilish Macintosh, the highlight of the Central Saint Martins master’s graduate presentation, echoed a similar sensibility with dark dresses that flaunted suggestive cutouts and were wrapped in bondage rope. There was a grown-up appeal to Richard Nicoll’s show, with its relaxed silhouette and a palette of pastels interrupted by eye-popping orange on the elegant sportswear and slinky dresses. Thomas Tait found his inspiration in race cars, sending out a series of athletically energetic looks that popped with racing stripes in vibrant colors and an attitude of brashness and vitality. One of our favorite newcomers, Simone Rocha, went for unabashed femininity, with softly sheer dresses and a girlish silhouette that emphatically made the case that even as London becomes more and more like New York and Paris, there will always be fresh new talents to keep the city on its toes.