Kane and Able: Why I think Christopher Kane is STILL the most exciting designer to come out of the UK in years.

When Christopher Kane, 30, established his fashion line in 2006, his name was little known worldwide. His graduate collection, in collaboration with his sister, was good, but nothing brilliant. Too many brights and too little material for the world to really take to his designs, Kane was another designer who was celebrated for his guts, but not necessarily his gusto when it came to his Ready-To-Wear; even after Versace's cool and kind nurturing, Kane wasn't yet a star, or a household name to the everyday fashionista.
Yet, in five years, Kane went from unknown to must-have. The mere thought of his name, or mention in a magazine spread or net-a-porter 'new in' sends my pulses racing. I know, from experience and from my close following of Kane's career since 2008, that whatever the piece is, be it a perspex dress or a appliqued trouser-suit, it will be incredible. 
In my life, I've never had enough money to buy one of Kane's pieces from his own label - My family are very average, and not particularly well off - but, in 2009, when his design collaboration with TOPSHOP hit nationwide stores, I snapped up (literally) his Crocodile Print vest dress, for £65. I still have it. It remains one of my favorite pieces of all time, and I honestly can't see myself getting rid of it any time soon - it's both personally, and aesthetically, part of my wardrobe. 
What makes Kane so exciting to me, is that he masters understated quirkiness so wholly and totally that every collection he has churned out in the past five years has been better than the last. Unlike designers such as Henry Holland or Meadham Kirchhoff, Kane doesn't need the bright colours or the shock factor to make his garments stand out above any others, in fact, all he needs is plastic, and a little wildlife photography. He's even been snapped up by the PR company who transformed Burberry into an international brand.
He also proved to the world in 2013 that he could do ladylike chic, still with that classic Kane twist. His A/W collection - full of silks, furs, leathers - was one for the books, leaving every blogger, journalist and fashion house with a loss of what they thought he could think of next. 
Kane, to me, is one of the best British designers of all time. Quirky, cool, ladylike and just the right side of wacky, Christopher Kane has, and always will be, my one to watch at every LFW for years to come.