Preen A/W '10: modern romantic.

Do you get that knot of excitement inside, when you see a designers collection, which you just know is going to be a big hit, because every, single piece just works? For last season it was Burberry, Christopher Kane and Alexander McQueen to name a few off the top of my head, who I felt were going to largely shape the highstreet for the next six months, just from that one collection. So far, I've felt the same about Preen. It was the first collection I've seen of NYFW that gave me a sliver of excitement and finally animated me, as I sat trawling through style.com (not to say I don't enjoy doing this, but you know, it takes a while looking through these designers!). 

First up: florals with a contemporary feel. 

The sneaky peeks of décolletage spied through cut-out panels of heavy black and sheer fabrics, made floral print look contemporary and sexy, whilst still exuding the labels cool factor.

Masculine tailoring that doesn't make you look too....well, mannish?

What I really loved about this collection was the masculine tailoring, which looked effortlessly cool and still somewhat chic, without being at all androgynous. As Meenal Mistry said in her review of the collection, this type of tailoring has moved on from the slouchy, younger looks of 'boyfriend' size. This is about "husband" pieces; heavy, well structured and so big they can wrap you up nearly twice round; the look is strong and undeniably sexy. It looked particularly nice in a neutral palette. The key here, is whatever you wear underneath your coat,  make it ultra feminine. Whether that's with a protrusion of sheer fabric or with the underwear as outerwear trend; with sexy, cut-out panels or if you just keep the legs out, it's the fusion of feminine and masculine style which makes this look so appealing. 

Bits of the collection reminded me of Christopher Kane's S/S '10 (yes, I really did love his collection and you will hear about it alot). However, Preen's wasn't about being subversively, sexy; it was bold and confident, and it made a very strong statement.

What do you think of Preen for A/W '10? Who's designed your favourite collection at NYFW so far?

Photos: Style.com