Petra Fagerström's lenticular pleating, the hand-sewn technique behind her SS27 catwalk

Petra Fagerström staged her first catwalk show on Friday morning at London Fashion Week, on a BFC NEWGEN slot. She was studying at Parsons Paris and working at Acne Studios and Balenciaga before Central Saint Martins, and was an International Talent Support finalist in 2022. February's outing was a presentation rather than a runway, styled by Harry Lambert, who worked on her first post-graduate collection. Stockists followed: Dover Street Market Paris, 10 Corso Como, H Lorenzo and Stone Soup. She is one of nine finalists for this year's LVMH Prize. Everything that moved on that runway was, at some point, somebody sitting down with a needle.

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01PETRA FAGERSTRÖM'S SS27 FABRIC CHANGES WHAT IT SHOWS YOU AS THE MODEL WALKS, AND EVERY PLEAT DOING THAT WAS SEWN BY HAND.

02SHE CALLS IT LENTICULAR PLEATING. HUNDREDS OF INDIVIDUAL PLEATS, HAND-SEWN ONE AT A TIME BEFORE THE FABRIC IS SET.

03THE CLOTH IS PRINTED IN TWO DIRECTIONS BEFORE ANY STITCHING, SO THE FINISHED PLEATS CARRY TWO IMAGES AT ONCE: PLAIN FROM ONE ANGLE, A FLORAL PRINT FROM THE NEXT.

04HOURS OF HAND-STITCHING GO IN BEFORE THE PLEATS ARE IRONED. SHE MAKES MOST OF THE COLLECTION HERSELF, IN A STUDIO AT SMITHFIELD MARKET.

05ON FRIDAY THE FLORALS WERE TROMPE-L'OEIL, CARRYING THE IMAGE OF LINGERIE. THE SUGGESTION OF UNDERWEAR, AND NO SKIN ON SHOW.

06THE MATERIAL WAS SLICED AND SLASHED. WHEN IT MOVED, A LATTICE CAME THROUGH THE SURFACE.

07THE CITED REFERENCE WAS GLAMOROUS WOMEN ON THE VERGE OF A NERVOUS BREAKDOWN, ISABELLE HUPPERT IN THE PIANO TEACHER AMONG THEM.

08THE LEATHER JACKETS CAME OFF DIOR'S BAR JACKET. SHE RAN THE SAME REFERENCE IN FEBRUARY, DOUBLE-FRONTED PIECES THAT MERGED A BAR JACKET WITH AN ANORAK.

09AT FESTIVAL D'HYÈRES IN 2023 SHE TOOK THE MERCEDES-BENZ SUSTAINABILITY AWARD AND CHANEL'S ATELIER DES MATIÈRES PRIZE, BOTH FOR WORK IN DISCARDED MATERIAL.

10SHE LEFT CENTRAL SAINT MARTINS IN 2025 WITH A SHARE OF THE L'ORÉAL YOUNG TALENT PRIZE. FRIDAY, IN THE NEWGEN SLOT AT TEN IN THE MORNING, WAS HER FIRST CATWALK.

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