Letter: From doorways to catwalks

CORD LeBARON writes ('Down, out and blasted, Review, 10 January): 'You can only step around duvet-wrapped bodies in shop doorways for so long before feeling the need to make some kind of adjustment.' We are told grunge fashion has been inspired by conscience.

It appears that buying an Agnes B leather cap for pounds 54, a Nicole Farhi grey chunky sweater for pounds 159, and slinging a string bag from the Conran shop over our shoulders will help us help those who layer their clothes eclectically for warmth and survivial.

The idea is grotesque. Homeless people are not style leaders, but people society has failed. It is trite and dishonest to use a serious social problem as an excuse for yet another stylist-driven trend. What fashion needs is not ill-considered excuses for its lack of true ideas but real, directioned innovation.

Charlotte Abrahams

New Malden, Surrey