london fashion week

What Happened at Burberry’s Gender-Bending Fashion Show

Photo: JUSTIN TALLIS/AFP/Getty Images

Burberry showed both men’s and women’s collections on the same runway in London today, elevating the label’s see-now, buy-now status to new heights with another first this season: All 250 pieces went up for sale right after the show.

A long list of house favorites and celebrities appeared, including Cara Delevingne, the Wintour crew, Mario Testino, Felicity Jones, Freida Pinto, Alexa Chung, Olivia Palermo, Adwoa Aboah, and Samantha Cameron. Kids lined up for hours waiting to see the Asian pop star/rapper/model Kris Wu before the show.

Kris Wu, Adwoa Aboah, Cara Delevingne, and Edie Campbell. Photo: David M. Benett/Dave Benett / Getty Images for Burberry
Clara Paget, Alexa Chung, and Olivia Palermo. Photo: David M. Benett/Getty Images for Burberry

The unisex looks were inspired by Virginia Woolf’s novel Orlando, which centers on an 18th-century man who wakes up as a woman. A copy of the book waited on each guest’s seat as a gift.

While a dramatic choral soundtrack played, models including Selena Forrest and Lineisy Montero Feliz wore unisex clothing in various shades of pink — ruffles on the men, high-ruffled collars like Elizabethan riffs.

Photo: Getty Images

Ornate fabric embellishments included military braiding and tapestry prints, with some pajama-inspired flourishes, like robe coats.

There were studded and braided bags, and classics like this one:

It was a big Instagram moment for the new Soho venue Makers House, where Burberry held an artisanal collaboration with the New Craftsmen — artists demoed calligraphy, quilting, and other crafts throughout the space.

A selection of runway looks and accessories went up for sale right after the show on Barneys.com and at three Barneys New York outposts — two in New York, one in Beverly Hills.

What Happened at Burberry’s Gender-Bending Fashion Show