Following on from my high street vs designer copycat rants of late, I figured this might be a good choice to talk about when the high street gets it right. 

Here are six fantastic designer/high street collaborations which prove beyond any reasonable doubt that this way of doing things works. No need for copying, see? 

Just work together! Peace!

 H! by Henry Holland for Debenhams

Debenhams has an enormous portfolio of designers already on board, from spangle-meister Julien Macdonald to the sleek, classic work of John Rocha. This spring they’re adding a bit of London cool to their roster with the addition of Henry Holland. Featuring bold prints, fun accessories and loads of great denim, the line will start at a teeny tiny £5 and is due in stores for early spring. 

I’m just guessing here, but I can’t imagine Henry’s own line is selling all that well so this is the perfect way for him to reach a whole new audience and grow his brand. Really awesome of Debenhams to choose him too; great choice of a very different designer to the rest of their names.

Ashish for Topshop

Topshop have worked with just about every young, cool, talented designer on the planet so it’s no surprise that Ashish is now designing a diffusion line for them. The animal print wedges that debuted last year were a ludicrously phenomenal success and I’m sure the multi-studded range of casual wear that’s just landed is going to be equally popular. 

This jacket has already been spotted on the very stylish back of Rihanna so they must be doing something right. It’s a little more pricey than some ranges (this top is £150, boo hoo) but it’s still a darn sight cheaper than buying Ashish off the peg.

Sophie Hulme for ASOS

ASOS is growing exponentially every day, seemingly getting bigger and bigger and doing better and better as the weeks roll by. It’s a great site offering great stock, but the addition of ‘The Hub’ last year really impressed me. 

Featuring an uber-cool selection of capsule collections created specifically for ASOS by a hand-picked bunch of hip young new designers, it provides an introduction to talent that might otherwise have slipped under the radar of the average ASOS customer. This stylish playsuit from Sophie Hulme is one of the current exclusives. Love it!

Giles Deacon Gold for New Look

It seems to be a bit of a running joke amongst the fashion community that Giles is up for a collaboration with anyone, but who are we to judge his methods? I know some people call it selling out but you know what? Maybe he’s genuinely passionate about all those suitcases/chocolate bars/cars/diaries. I mean it! Who are we to say that someone who wants a vamped up Filofax can’t have one, just because they wouldn’t wear a Giles catwalk frock? 

His line for New Look continues to fly off the shelves and, again, I’d say he’s probably not a designer that many young girls would have been previously familiar with outside of his New Look collabo, and those youngsters might be the Tavis of the future.

Zandra Rhodes for Marks & Spencer

As one of the most well established and famous British designers of the last century, I think it probably came as a surprise to some people when Zandra revealed she was doing a line with M&S but if you’re gonna have a 60s style icon like Twiggy fronting your campaign, why not get another legend of the era to put her creative skills to good use? 

I’m not sure if she’s making another range for them — at the moment the only thing online is an amazing looking range of crockery that she’s done for them. Still, this holiday capsule collection that hit stores last year proved that designer collaborations aren’t just for young ‘uns.

 Beth Ditto for Evans

OK, so she’s not a designer but Beth’s range for plus-size chain Evans was another runaway success story last year. I love the fact that she turned down a line for Topshop on the grounds that they didn’t sell clothes big enough to fit her so, well, why would she want to design for them? 

Her collection for Evans was every bit as cool as you’d expect from a snazzy dresser like Beth, and proved that plus-sized doesn’t have to mean boring billowy tops in neutral shades. Super stylish was the name of the game and I reeeeally hope she does another line for them, ASAP.