Peter Jensen s new muse is Julia Fodor, aka living legend of London nightlife Princess Julia. She s as typically deadpan as ever about the role, but her own distinctive femme fatale style—a bit of sparkle, a bit of vintage, a veil or two—sits well with the increasing sophistication of Jensen s signature quirk. Their worlds meshed beautifully in a dressy bouclé coat in a rich shade of pumpkin, with a tulle-lined skirt to match.
Julia took on her title during the first heady flush of punk in the late 70s. Jensen reminded us of those days with a grabby graphic of Jayne County s eyes printed on a shift dress and embroidered on a sweatshirt. There were also prints of lipstick stains and perfume bottles on prim white blouses. The clash of style and content was a clever comment on Julia s style.
That s always been the distinctive thing about her look. It s very glamorous, but it s very proper. Which rather defined Jensen s collection. A piecrust collar? Positively pilgrim. But proper can be sly, too, like the Peter Pan-collar dress in gold lamé, all covered up until it turned to reveal a saucy slit right up the back. There was a potentially incongruous outbreak of casual sportiness in a look with a sweater knotted round the waist (Julia does yoga), except the dress was, once again, cut from lamé, and the sweater was actually a trompe l oeil effect. Jensen did the same thing with a strapless cocktail dress. Also strapless was a jumpsuit in ivory crepe. "I d like a wedding dress," Julia told Jensen. So that s what he gave her. Muse s prerogative.
