Gone were the flowers, frills and gauzy fabrics which are - for reasons practical as well as aesthetic - the staples of the summer wardrobe. In came warm wools, tartans and tweeds in rich and even sombre hues that knocked the ubiquitous pink and ivory well and truly off its girlish pedestal. Vivienne Westwood Red Label, House of Holland, Paul Smith as well as just about any other designer one might care to mention were doing it. So far, so predictable.

Perhaps more significantly, with the word luxury by now so over-used it has become meaningless, this was a moment when a more distressed and at times Gothic vision came to the fore, one indebted to the iconoclastic archive of Dame Vivienne Westwood but also to early Yohji Yamamoto, Comme des Garcons and the great Belgian designers.

The word deconstruction fails to do justice to Noki’s autumn collection, after all, which saw clothing torn apart at the seams and then reassembled in ever more inventive a manner. Gareth Pugh’s fetish-inspired take on glamour was equally unsettling; so too was Marios Schwab’s layered broken surfaces that were so fragile they fluttered when models walked. A more well-mannered take on this particular theme came courtesy of Roksanda Ilincic whose silk charmeuse cocktail dresses and evening gowns came complete with raw edges and zips undone to expose neon-pink linings.

All of the above - including, of course, the easy oversized tailoring (Ann-Sofie Back, Paul Smith, Betty Jackson) in black and all the shades of greige - had its roots in the early Eighties.

But this was also a moment that nodded to the 1970s. The Ossie Clark revival might not have lived up to the hype but the brains behind the new Jaeger London line had clearly taken note and turned to both the colours and silhouettes of that decade. Trousers here were long, lean and boot cut and colours across the board – tights in burnt orange and olive at Luella, plum and muted shades of green at Giles, deep purple, Coleman’s Mustard yellow and olive again at Aquascutum – brought this period to mind.

Micro-trends – as they are known in the trade – were equally nostalgic. Exposed zips (Giles Deacon, Roksanda Ilincic, Westwood Red Label) are a feature of Eighties dress, fringing (Giles, Emma Cook, Louise Gray) of the Seventies and so forth. Hosiery, meanwhile, has never looked more high-profile. Tights were jewelled (Betty Jackson), printed with stars (Westwood Red Label), coloured (Luella) and, most remarkable, in tie-dyed latex (Emma Cook).

Skirt lengths were similarly extreme, either micro-mini (House of Holland, Luella, Westwood Red Label) or maxi (Christopher Kane, Marios Schwab). Paillettes are the new sequins (Christopher Kane), organza is still fashionable but only in neutral colours and especially when grey (Christopher Kane, Betty Jackson, Topshop Unique).

Finally, there are some things in fashion that simply will not die and top of this particular pile is the chunky, platform-soled boot/shoe. Suffice it to say that these have never looked bigger, almost orthopaedic in appearance in places (Emma Cook, Westwood Red Label, Marios Schwab), with wooden heels (Luella) or encrusted with crystal the colour of boiled sweets (Giles).

It's good to be Gothic. Scary fairy dresses looked as pretty as the proverbial picture at Luella
UPPA/Photoshot

Red tights! Hosiery has never seemed like such a complex business. Tights came coloured at Jasper Conran (pictured) and Luella, jewelled at Betty Jackson and in tie-dyed latex at Emma Cook
AP

Vivienne Westwood showed her Red Label collection in London for the first time in over a decade. Cue: saucy silhouettes, phallic embellishment and models who don't just walk, they stride
David Sandison

Is fashion's love affair with all that is waif-like and passive finally coming to a close? In fact, Westwood (pictured) has always used models that break the mould but Emma Cook and the designers at Fashion East are now also thinking that way
David Sandison

Gingham and corduroy in schoolboy colours are suitably cheeky at Luella
UPPA/Photoshot

At Topshop Unique almost every exit was layered over skin-tight leather jeans, a major trend alert if ever there was one. If leather legs fail to appeal, a sixties style shift might cut a dash
David Sandison

Summer's love affair with organza looks set to continue this autumn/winter (Christopher Kane). Brrrrrrrr
Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images

You're never alone with a hat that looks like an upturned flower pot (Biba)
CARL DE SOUZA/AFP/Getty Images

A Seventies influence was plain to see at Jaeger London as these boot-cut trousers in a plummy colour go to show
CARL DE SOUZA/AFP/Getty Images

Ballerinas at Jasper Conran provide at least some respite from the deluge of ever more chunky platform-soled footwear
Adrian Dennis/AFP/Getty Images

Indulge in an Audrey Hepburn moment with Jasper Conran's latest collection
Adrain Dennis/AFP/Getty Images

At Ossie Clark, models wobbled precariously on rotating silver podiums. It's a dirty job and all that
DAVID SANDISON/THE INDEPENDENT

Gothic undertones across the board decree that black is the new black. Again
Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images

Pick a skirt length, any skirt length will suffice. At Christopher Kane there was mini, maxi and mid-length to choose from
Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images

A warm camel coat courtesy of Nicole Farhi goes to prove that London is not simply a breeding ground for outré young talent
David Sandison