Patrick McDowell has set out to draw parallels between his Liverpudlian heritage and the world of French royalty taking inspiration from the opulence and overindulgence of Marie Antoinette, and the women of Liverpool that Patrick grew up watching peacock around his hometown. Combining the brand’s signature ‘PX’ logo with the ‘LET THEM EAT CAKE’ slogan McDowell reinvents the imperial French flag through the vision of the collection’s concept, infusing French couture with Liverpool staples, such as the tracksuit and the ball gown. The collection draws upon pastel tones in an ode to Marie Antoinette’s preference towards colours representing youth and femininity combined with strong accents of chartreuse and noir. McDowell experiments with varying proportions of basqued waists and bouffant skirts, blending classic silhouettes with contemporary Liverpudlian twists. Playing with volume and proportion whilst juxtaposing suits and corsets to bring these classic design features into a modern age, McDowell presents his vision unencumbered by gendered constraints. The prints from this collection have been created from family pictures of Patrick, his Mother and Grandmother in their childhood years, drawing on the element of personal storytelling that is integral to McDowell’s design practice and reflecting on these childhood memories which Marie herself held so dear.

Each piece was designed and made in London with a low carbon footprint in mind, and will be available on a made to order limited basis following the show on McDowell’s newly designed website. As ever, avoiding overproduction and creating long lasting, emotionally connected garments that fit the client perfectly is the core aim of the McDowell brand with this collection as no exception.

“Making collections that are deeply personal is a labour of love. I feel like a part  of me is inside each and everyone of these pieces. As ever, I have doubled down on what fashion  means to me, who I am and where I come from. I’ve created a dream world of sustainable  fantasy that captures the essence of peacock dressing for now. Growing up watching the scouse women around me get dressed up to go out and noticing how similar this felt to the writings about  the court at versailles lead me to imagine a fictional past where Marie escaped the guillotine and ran away to Liverpool ”