Toots and Booty: Review: What Katie Did SS12

Monday, 5 March 2012

Review: What Katie Did SS12 – The Launch Party

We’ve been highly anticipating the What Katie Did SS12 collection at Toots & Booty which was finally launched online and in the LA and London stores on Thursday. To celebrate the new collection, the brand put on a wonderful launch party in their London boutique yesterday complete with a catwalk show and a super sexy burlesque performance from Miss Miranda.

The event was thoughtfully kicked off with the sweetest little Vintage Patisserie cupcakes and – more interestingly for me - gin cocktails. The What Katie Did boutique is a gorgeous place to hold any event. In fact, I think it should be available for hire it’s that pretty. If you live in London it’s really worth visiting because it complements the lingerie in such a beautiful way that you just don’t get online and the girls that work in the shop are always so knowledgeable and friendly.

However, that’s enough general What Katie Did fan-girling from me and on with the review. The catwalk show was very nicely put together and was staged as a sort of window display with everyone watching from outside the shop. This meant that we could all watch the lovely WKD models prance about inside the boutique without getting in the way and made it more like a performance.

Deco

First, it was great to see the new 'Deco' range in prime position high above the racks of luxurious fabrics and colours. This marks the third in the 'Deco' saga. First came the understated black version and last year an updated black and red little number – my personal favourite – graced the boutique’s shelves. I’m usually not a huge lover of pink but this new model is just so dainty and pretty. The silver sun-burst motif, although obviously very art-deco, reminds me of mermaids.

Being someone who follows the brand’s social media pretty religiously I’d already seen a few sneaky previews but was very pleased to find that Katie had kept most things under wraps. This led to a few very pleasant surprises. The first surprise for me was a really sumptuous red set. Forgive me for not knowing its name; I don’t think it’s available for sale yet but it is oh so beautiful.

Cabaret - from Whatkatiedid.com

Camiknicker - from Whatkatiedidlingerie.tumblr.com

Another very exciting addition is the above pictured Camiknicker. What Katie Did's 'Hollywood' robe was one of my chosen pieces for my Best of Loungerie post but I think after seeing this beauty, a rethink may be required! This first part of the show was also joined by some updated versions of existing lines such as the new 'Cabaret' bullet bra and 'Cabaret' knickers with a satin deco-style motif – the cabaret range consists mainly of saucy sheer panels so take a look if you’re more daring with your knicker-wear.

The interlude to the catwalk was Miss Miranda’s aforementioned burlesque performance which attracted some curious passers-by and featured the stunning new ‘Marlene’. This set is defined by a contrast bullet bra of black satin and peach organza but my favourite piece is the uniquely shaped suspender belt. Although the withdrawal to four suspender straps rather than the standard six is a little disconcerting, the metal clips that are so hard to find outside of Katie’s magical world are, thankfully, ever present. And as Katie says on the website, “the majority of suspender belts in the 1950s featured 4 clips, and if that's good enough for the heyday of stocking-wear it's good enough for us!” As for Miss Miranda’s burly dance, I’ll let these photos speak for themselves!

Now this is a Spring/Summer collection and it wouldn’t be complete without the staple WKD bathing suit. The new swimwear did not disappoint and is available in a summery powder blue and black (claret will be available in April). Both the bathing suit and the bikini are skirted, halter-necked and finished off with contrast white detailing.

The final addition to the collection is an expanded range of the raw silk corsets. There were some stunned intakes of breath in the lingerie-loving crowd when the new raw silk ‘Storm’ was introduced in stunning aubergine. This was a fitting finale to a very enjoyable show and it is this example of beautiful design and exceptional attention to detail that will keep retro lingerie enthusiasts coming back to What Katie Did again and again.