Searching for that dream piece of art but not sure where to start? Online platform Like Love Want launched this week, aiming to remove the barriers a physical store might present by accessibly exhibiting hand-picked artists with a particular focus on the discovery of the new.Stocking a host of styles from oil paintings and screen prints to macro photography and limited edition pieces, Like Love Want has been designed as an interface that allows visitors to become more intimate with the art than might be possible in a shop setting. With practical tools such as 'in-situ' – which allows users to upload an image of a room and virtually hang pieces to scale prior to purchase – and a powerful search mechanism, risks are minimized, new artists are explored and the buying process is simplified.

“Inspired by the clean lines of the Guggenheim Museum in New York, we wanted to develop a gallery where visitors could stroll through and enjoy discovering the artwork on display; and where artists could be proud to exhibit their work.” said Kirsten Doddy, managing director of Like Love Want. Users can also curate their own collection online, adding to the interactivity of the site.

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With all things opulent taking to the fore this Autumn/Winter – and let’s face it, it may as well be November already with the weather as it is – Miu Miu’s timely foray into the slipper is a welcome burst of comfort. Modern and feminine, the classic shoe has been updated with bow detailing, embroidered elements and sumptuous crystal facets contributing to the lavish regal overtones.

Plush velvets, dashing satins and even patent leathers are employed to imperial effect, with a palette comprising blue, bureaux, ottanio, ibisco, nudo and black working modernity into the artisanal overtones.

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Images courtesy of Miu Miu

Pure Italian opulence, Roberto Rimondi and Tommaso Aquilano drew on Renaissance paintings and ornate churches for their AW12 collection, an amalgamation which spoke regal volumes. Hyper-detailed jacquards and sumptuous tapestries played across royal blues, reds and greens, with tone-on-tone black detailing, leather touches and lavish velvets keeping everything feeling super-rich. Pieces ran close to the body, with cropped trouser suits adding a macho accent to a largely feminine line: waists were defined and skirts were crafted into a hip-accentuating tulip shape. What looked like jewel-encrusted bodices further notched up the glamour – this was a show brimming with grown-up, stately elegance with a twist of cool.

Images courtesy of Style.com

Geology has never been a sexy subject, yet Karl Lagerfeld’s sartorial study of rock and earth in his AW12 collection for Chanel has surely found beauty in these most basic of elements. From the stalagmite-scattered runway to the tiny crystals meticulously set into cuffs and trims, the whole collection radiated with the quiet mineralised splendour of nature. 

It wasn’t just the literal sparkle that gave the collection its crystalline charm. A palette of precious stone-inspired hues – emerald, amethyst and sapphire, plus bottle green, indigo and purples – ensured that the Chanel feeling of pure luxury overrode any glitz. Layering gave the show a crucial dynamic: trousers – velvet, streamlined, or generously full – under dresses and skirts, with the whole ensemble then enveloped in an oversized jacket or coat. Lagerfeld also genuinely crafted a new silhouette; taking inspiration from the angular, almost cubic form of multifaceted crystal, sleeves were tucked and folded giving an origami feel and a voluminous outline. These shapes were replicated in colour across knitwear, mimicking the runway backdrop.

Two key pieces ran throughout: those elegantly cut-out ankle boots, with the curving outline and Perspex heel contributing to the futuristic undertones; and the Maison Lesage eyebrows. Dramatically arched and subtly glittering, their glistening quality was reflected in the feather and applique embellishments seen elsewhere.

Another show with a strong equestrian theme – set to become a full-blown trend? Almost certainly; Givenchy is powerfully influential – with all kinds of intriguing riding jackets on show, classic-with-a-quirk jodhpurs and long, knee high boots. But back to the jackets: from the front, each piece looked archetypal, no doubt beautifully tailored with that gentle flare at the hip, but nothing revolutionary. Yet the rear view offered bustle-like detailing, with peplums galore and dressage-style tails – each piece crafted to perfection. And while Riccardo Tisci’s woman was the most stylish girl at the stables during the day, by night she was transformed into a redolent Bourdin-inspired being. Evoking the photographer’s more sensual works, delicate, almost diaphanous camisole-style silk dresses in sunset colours with delicate embellishment more than notched up the glamour.

It almost goes without saying that the name Loewe is synonymous with leather. While steeped in Spanish heritage, designer Stuart Vevers has, for the past four years, taken the traditional leatherwork of the house forward into the now, employing an array of advanced techniques for modernity without betraying the historic character of the label.

As well as balancing past with present, the AW12 collection also juxtaposed masculine with feminine, with Vevers taking inspiration from the Royal Andalusian School of Equestrian Art as well as a 50s, full-skirted outline. The strength of the equine dimension was apparent in the stiff rigidity – not unlike saddlery – in coats and sleek fitted shorts, while a dark palette – largely black but with chocolate hues and an occasional splash of colour thrown in – spoke in masculine tones. Yet the glossy allure throughout, the circle skirts and those furry dresses lifted the mood, indicating that these this all-round toughness has a soft sophistication, too.

Call it punk, street style or rock'n'roll, the Jean Paul Gaultier AW12 show had them all and in abundance: but in a sweetly insouciant manner that suggests this hard, urban goddess has a softer, fun side too.

Jackets were key – whether demurely zipped, or most likely, almost brazenly slung with a devil-may-care attitude that gave these urban pieces a definitively sexy spin. As perhaps expected, leather prevailed, as did the puffer-shape, graffiti-style decoration and borderline acid-toned colour pops. Blazers also featured heavily, so too the vivid fur accents, metallics and – of course – the trademark cinching Gaultier corset belt, for which he has become so famed.

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Never without a quirk, a Maison Martin Margiela show can always be relied upon to stir up intrigue. Deconstruction and thought-provoking tailoring have become house signatures in recent seasons, and AW12 was no exception. 

Trousers were central to the collection – or were they? Often a pair turned out to be a skirt cleverly spliced into two – and precise, almost acute, tailoring paved the way for many an illusion. Sleeves were sewn into pockets. Trouser leg hems were elevated only at the rear. Collars and turtlenecks upturned so vertiginously that the models could barely peek over the top. Chopped and reassembled, the deconstructed skirting also required a second look to work it out. But with typical Margiela panache, each piece felt deliberate, finely tuned, and perfectly constructed. 

All great runway shows tell a story, and Nicolas Ghesquière's latest offering for Balenciaga gave more than a narrative, transporting us back to the house as it was in the ‘80s – with the models themselves as employees in varying roles. An experimental collection, corporate stereotypes were identified and explored, played out across witty sweatshirts, top-heavy, sharp silhouettes and stiff A-line skirts.

While the get-set-to-disco dresses and jumpsuits so reminiscent of the era contributed to an underlying feeling of nostalgia, advanced fabrics along with that emphasis on the shoulder rewrote the history books for a collection that felt more futuristic than throwback. Leather-edged skirts, conical heels and the appliquéd lamé detailing dashed across jackets ensured this was a forward-looking show, with just the right amount of fantasy.