It's Official: LFW Has Really Begun!

London Fashion Week officially kicked off yesterday morning and we're loving the new tipple on offer right outside the tents: hot chocolate, which comes from a Topshop-sponsored van and is the perfect pick-me-up in the winter chill (did we mention they give you hand warmers there as well?) What a clever idea to keep fashionistas from shivering all day!

Celeb-wise, we knew we weren't going to top Thursday night's Fashion For Relief show, but we did get a few early sightings. Girls Aloud's Nicola Roberts was spotted front row at newbies Jena Theo (they were awarded the Fashion Fringe at Covent Garden award by Donatella Versace last season), where she gushed of the show, "It was brilliant. I thought the clothes were amazing," while La Roux turned heads at Charlie Le Mindu, who told us about his wild, religion-inspired collection this season. "I wanted to show there were sexy feelings in every religion; they are all really dirty. I want people to wear sexy stuff in the street," he said after the show. We saw Yasmin Le Bon front row at Maria Grachvogel, Pixie Geldof perched on a guy's lap at Felder Felder/Jean Pierre Braganza/Hannah Marshall (where we also saw Jamie Winstone and Little Boots) and the front row at Sass & Bide was almost a preview of the new M&S campaign, with Lisa Snowden and Twiggy sitting practically side by side. Sadly, David Koma's front row wasn't as star-studded as it might have been, but we're sure many a pop star will be vying to get into his itty-bitty, sexy dresses, this time with a heavy geometric emphasis and graphic zig-zag patterns.

We loved the sexy leather looks at Felder Felder and the lush velvet catsuits with seductive slits at Hannah Marshall, and we were also very excited to see the new talent at Vauxhall Fashion Scout: the Ones to Watch line-up this season included Danish duo Askh, who presented men's and women's pieces; Eudon Choi, who cut his design chops at Twenty8Twelve under Savannah Miller; Florencia Kozuch, whose style is influenced by her Argentinian background; and David Longshaw, who has already won a number of accolades and worked for both Maxmara and Alberta Ferretti. Watch this space.

And from what we've seen so far, it looks like shoulders are still major, tough, urban warrior-style is also not going anywhere, and Avatar has left a lasting legacy: on lips. Blue pouts were seen at Charlie Le Mindu and Hannah Marshall, and they kind of looked amazing. YSL did get everyone to paint lips black in summer 2008, so it might not be totally out of the question for this look to go from runway to reality....