London Fashion Week show report: Emilio de la Morena

I've often thought my heart is Spanish. There just seems to be beauty everywhere in Spain. Going to church on a Sunday morning in Spain will leave me with more fashspiration (not that that's a word, nor is it the point of going to church, ahem) than a whole day of people watching somewhere closer to home.

One of the great things about our capital is how culturally diverse it is, and one of the great things about London as a design hub is that so many of our favourite "London designers" aren't from here. They study at Central Saint Martins and London College of Fashion and make London their home, but never forget their roots and where they came here from. You can always see the Spanish blood running through the veins of Emilio's collections and it's a real treat to see this brought to life with a London influence.

For SS13 Emilio moved on from the body-con shapes we've seen him use so well in the past and looked more to volume and shape. Don't get me wrong, this was still a very figure hugging collection (*puts down the manchego*), but there were pleats and folds and the most wonderful ruffles. I didn't think I'd be a ruffle lover, but Emilio could probably persuade me to love dresses made of old newspapers. The collection was shown at Home House and couldn't have been a more fitting setting, even the curtains seemed to perfectly match the garments!

Emilio took inspiration from English artist Rachel Whiteread's work for this collection, Rachel's work looks at re-visiting the past and casting light on forgotten and neglected objects and spaces. Emilio looked at the neglected elements within his own studio to come up with the colour palette for this season - which brought us the heavenly combo of blood orange red, saffron yellow, mint green and powder pink. Emilio developed the concept further and looked to the way memory works and often distorts over time, we were shown different sized ruffles and graphic square prints within leather layered with sheer silk and summer wools, making us question our own memories of what we'd just seen.

The tailoring was sharp and I surprised myself by how much I liked the feminine suits with their cropped trousers and jackets. I really don't have the legs for cropped trousers, yet the ruffles drew me in and I'm already considering how I can make my knees less fat by next summer to be able to wear such pieces. Yes, fat knees exist.

I love that Emilio designs for strong, modern, in control women. Emilio has described his ideal client as being "at the centre of the work that she does, whatever the industry and whatever the level. Don't mess with this woman; she will have you wrapped around her little finger in no time." This sophisticated collection couldn't fit the brief of the target client more. She really does mean business, and next spring she'll be in a boardroom near you - armed with ruffles and pleats.