Music meets fashion in LA as Stella McCartney shows pre-fall line

Music, celebrities and fashion came together in Los Angeles on Tuesday as British designer Stella McCartney presented her autumn 2016 collection amid the Hollywood awards season buzz.

Models danced between rows of records and CDs at Hollywood's landmark Amoeba Music store, dressed in "fur-free fur" or embroidered coats and jackets adorned in cat motifs and leopard and tiger prints.

Light dresses bore graphic circles while loose blouses were paired with loose trousers. Known for her neutral colour palettes, McCartney's pre-fall line came in cream and earthy tones with dabs of indigo, orange and pink.

The designer, who presents her main collections in Paris, follows on the heels of Tom Ford, who showcased his fall 2015 line in Hollywood in February. Last year, Louis Vuitton held its "LV Series 2" exhibit in Hollywood while Burberry took over Los Angeles' Griffith Observatory to show its 2015 collection.

"We'd always wanted to have a party in LA and it just really felt like the right time," McCartney said.

"I have so many close friends here and I spend a lot of time here and it just feels like a moment when music, film, fashion, the arts, it's all just come together for LA."

McCartney often dresses select celebrities for the red carpet. At Sunday's Golden Globes, Taraji P. Henson, who won best drama TV actress for "Empire", wore a custom McCartney strapless white dress.

"We don't go out and, kind of, attack people and we don't pay people, we just go with the flow of whatever happens that season," she said.

The show drew big names like Gwyneth Paltrow, Kate Hudson, Katy Perry and Anjelica Huston to the store. McCartney, daughter of former Beatle Paul McCartney, said music is a key influence.

"I've been brought up with music, so it's something that I feel very comfortable around, probably more comfortable around than fashion, quite frankly," she said.

The fashion spotlight on Los Angeles centres on the red carpets rolled out during the two-month awards season.

Saint Laurent will present its fall/winter 2016 menswear and part of its womenswear collections in Los Angeles on Feb. 10 ahead of the Grammy Awards five days later.

The curtains come down on the awards season on Feb. 28 when the Oscars are handed out at the Academy Awards ceremony in Hollywood's Dolby Theater.