ecru magazine

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issue 1

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Contents

22-25 Gemma Williams

58-65 Lydia Garde

50-57 Louise Bennetts

82-83 Anya Edwards

74-81 Daniela Stevens

72-73 Veronica Kadi

18-21 Stina Persson

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BLOW Presents LIVE Autumn/Winter 2012

10-11 Backstage at Fam Irvoll Autumn/Winter 2012

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BLOW Presents Spring/Summer 2012 Shoot

40-49 Grace Butler

30-39 Claire Huish

26-29 Iryna Mikhailovich

66-71 Eve Tokens

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Editor’s Letter

The birth of Ecru magazine falls upon us just in time for Graduate Fashion Week, 2012. With Ecru’s focus being on new talent within the creative fashion industry, this first issue has taken off with a boom. Throughout Ecru, it is clear to see that all aspects of fashion are accounted for from catwalks to illustrators. Ecru has reached out across the UK, gathering inspiration from Surrey, Bournemouth, Bath, Edinburgh and London this issue.

Ecru brings to you the latest backstage news from London Fashion Week within the emerging talent market, focusing on innovative platforms. We introduce to you this issue, the designers of BLOW Presents as they pioneered into a static exhibition this season.

We see garments as the forefront of information, capturing the beauty of construction and narrative. Therefore we visited designers, Eve Tokens, Anya Edwards and Iyrna Mikhailovich from the University of the Creative Arts,

Epsom to document their process.

Photography is what brings garments to life, demonstrated by photographers Claire Huish, Daniela Stevens, Lydia Garde with inspirational editorials. Fashion Design graduates, Gemma Williams and Grace Butler’s collections have been captured, representing an inspiration to the next generation. Illustrations from Veronica Kadi and Louise Bennetts transform paper, bringing it to life.

I would like to take this time to thank everyone who has been involved and congratulate those who have made it to Graduate Fashion Week. This issue has been rewarding and wishes success to those featured.

Emma WhistonEmma Whiston, Editor in Chief

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BLOW Presents LIVE

Photography | Jean-Luc Brouard

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Blow Present LiveBlow presents | blowpresents.wordpress.comLondon Fashion week A/W 2012February 16th FebruaryNetil House

Autumn/Winter 2012 saw the birth of ‘BLOW Presents LIVE’. An exhibition celebrating emerging designers to kick start London Fashion Week with a twist to catwalks. The concept was for the designers to aesthetically brand themselves, exhibiting their creations to interact with the press. The ideology behind the presentation was to create an innovative space, highlighting the talent of new creatives.

In a warehouse situated in Bethnal Green, the Thursday evening before catwalks kicked off for London Fashion Week, Netil House’s cafe saw the transformation into a showcase of talent. Six designers attended the exhibition, designed by architect company Y/N Studios. An installation of mirrored ribbon led the guests round a journey of discovery and inspiration, offering a new and unusual view to the garments whilst the curved backdrops manipulated and exaggerated detail. Wonderland’s Shane Hawkins, also known as Fresh Flower Pressed was resident DJ for the evening, playing 90’s hip-hop, giving the exhibition a retro vibe to accompany the interiors of it’s surroundings. The event had a buzz of energy and raw creativity with gems shining out of the darkness.The event featured live drawings from print artist, Claire Barrow who is known for her intriguing leather pattern work.

Jane Bowler | janebowler.co.uk, Aurora Ozma | auroraozma.com, Eleanor Amoroso | eleanoramoroso.com, Claudia Ligari | claudialigari.com, Zyanya Keizer | zyanyakeizer.com, MaryMe-JimmyPaul | maryme-jimmypaul.com

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Six designers displayed their work. Following the mirrored design around the exhibition, we first saw designer Zyanya Keizer, Zyanya is inspired by mythical sea monsters, particularly the Kraken and her dark, richly textured designs pull you into their depths. The designer wore one of her creations, echoing her mannequin in a black body con dress laden with a heavy embellishment of sequins and metalwork that has been crafted to create organic, skeletal shapes.

Secondly was Eleanor Amoroso, where a model stood towering over the room, so still it felt surreal. Black dresses cascaded from the ceiling, showing Eleanor’s designs which are tough and dark but with an undeniable feminine elegance. The darkness of her designs is what makes the innovative use of fabric truly striking as soft chiffons and silks are surprisingly manipulated and built up by hand to sculpt strong silhouettes. They are powerful and warrior queen like but expose windows of flesh.

Beneath the glitter of the disco ball the light bounced off of the mirror and around the room capturing the bright, sweetie wrapper allure of Jane Bowler’s work. Three models with whitened, chalky faces and sleek wet hair stand on plinths of varying height, rotating their poses. A contrasting blast of shocking florescent colour, fringing, metallics and an array of fabrics that includes plastics, leathers and knitwear displayed a punchy mixture of texture and technique that is fearless and playful yet sophisticatedly composed and utterly unique. Her signature fringing adds highlights of movement and playfulness against a backdrop

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of angular printed surfacesJane is inspired by The ocean as it possesses an aura of mystery, adventure and intrigue mankind which portrays wonders and d a n g e r .

A group of mannequin heads raised to eye level on poles above a floor scattered with bunches of dried roses displayed the avant-garde headwear pieces by Aurora Ozma. The designer, dressed in a stunning 50’s skirt and glitter heels, slid between her heads adjusting their positions, her perfect blonde ‘Sandy-esque’ pony swishing about the smooth scalps. Inspired by folk and fairy tales, 19th century Russian paintings and mysticism Ozma has used an engaging range of materials such as fur and synthetic hair against sleek latex and rhinestones in a select natural colour scheme of deep mahoganies, beige, black and white. Her designs hark back to bygone eras yet appear like something you have never seen before, giving Aurora’s work a surrealist quality.

A model dressed in cool minimalist black and a cap stands on a stage in front of video projections rolling the designer’s fashion films. Claudia Ligari’s designs are fresh and neat yet sensual. However, geometry, structured shoulders and non-conformist fabrics such as hammered silk, silicone moulded gloves and leather, gave her garments an androgynous feel and explore the diversity of wear on the female form.

In the corner a circus of shape, colour and texture make up the topsy-turvey, madness of Maryme-JimmyPaul. The designs are fun,

having the clash of fabrics and the rigidity of their form denotes awkwardness and the absurd. The collection is inspired by teenage disharmony, horror movies and fictitious monsters and condensed into architectural, geometric shapes with contrasting textures and patterns. The shoes represented ballet points, created with binary opposite textures of concrete.

The event was sponsored by Tatty Devine, Stargazer make-up, VitaCoco, Lee

Stafford and Dash magazine.

The evening had a certain array to it and exceeded expectations. Guests came in their masses, including publications such as LOVE, Vogue and 1883, therefore being a success with the hope of another exhibition next season.

Photography | Alvise GuadaText | Emma Whiston

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Fam Irvoll S/S12The Oslo born Norwegian designer graduated from Central St Martins in London in 2008 and from then on has been known for her quirky, unique signature style. Fam’s previous collections have all had one theme running throughout, being food; Fam’s garments are highly inspired by cupcakes and candy. Staying true to her ways, this season Fam brings us Monster MASH to kickstart her first collection in London. Continuing with her pastel pantones, Fam incorporates monsters in to every piece through the colour palette of sweets. Fam’s collection is extremely wearable this season, with accessories and shoes giving it that extra wow

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factor. Fam’s pieces are colourful and exciting in terms of fabric use, embedding sequins, bead work and 3D knitwear. Autumn/Winter 2012 sees Fam collaborate with renowned shoe company, Undergroud. With the design of Underground and the aesthetic of Fam, these were bound to be a big hit with press this season.

Fam also has a childrenswear line, Little Cupcakes, which this season was incorporated into the womenswear catwalk with three chirpy young girls, jumping, skipping and waving down the catwalk. This brought the fun back in to static catwalks. This time, Little Cupcakes sees an influence of animals with elephants being present within the jumpsuits, leggings, jumpers and coats.

The show began with an unusual choice of the Ghostbusters theme tune and continued to have fun music throughout the show. Backstage, behind the scenes is usually somewhere very stressful, but this show was different; it was a barrel of laughs as the collection brought a fun-filled vibe. Having Fam bouncing around herself kept everyone stress free with her bubbly personality. Body Shop were the sponsored make-up artists, designing alien-eyed nail decorations with block coloured eyes and mouths using the backs of discs. Toni & Guy styled the hair to fit in with the alien aesthetic, including neon hair extensions.

Fam’s collection put a smile on everyone’s faces and kept everyone going throughout the rest of London Fashion Week.

Designer | Fam Irvoll | famirvoll.blogspot.comPhotographer | Kris Atomic | krisatomic.comText | Emma Whiston

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Blow Presents sees their designer’s Spring/Summer 2012 collections displayed in a new light. Uniquely photographed on wet plates, we see the merge of a traditional style with a contemporary subject. Blow Presents do seasonal photo shoots to celebrate their new creatives, this time seeing photographer Rosie Welsh incorporate her collodion process, allowing each image to be permanently captured to a glass plate. Blow Presents designer’s this season have excelled themselves with their designs speaking for themselves as the photography highlights the beauty of the garments.

Dresses | Eleanor Amoroso

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Over Garmentss | Bolshie

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Jacket | Jane Bowler

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Dress | Olivia Deane | Head Piece | Bjorg

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Jacket | Tom Lipop

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Inspired by Stina Persson

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Beautiful illustrations using ink, watecolour and gouache, created by a student from the University for the Creative Arts, Epsom. Illustrations inspired by Stina Persson.

Text | Emma Whiston

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Designer | gemmawilliams.blogspot.co.uk

Art Director, Stylist & Text | Emma Whiston | emmawhiston.portfoliobox.netPhotographers | Andre & Cuthbertson | cargocollective.com/andreandcuthbertsonModel | Bradley McGill @AMCK | amckmodels.com/models/bradley-mcgill/222

Gemma Williams

Gemma graduated from the University for the Creative Arts, Epsom in 2011. Her final collection is inspired by Sherlock Holmes, specifically the story called 'The man with the Twisted Lip' and was mainly inspired

by the clues within the story such as blood stains, hence the blood print, but also shapes of traditional trench coats and details from the deerstalker hat.

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26Final year Fashion Design student at the University for the Creative Arts, Epsom, 2012.

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Iryna Mikhailovich

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Iryna was born and bred in Russia, 10 years ago she moved to the United Kingdom to follow her childhood dream of becoming a Fashion Designer. Following her course of Fashion Design and Marketing at London College of Communication, Iryna has been in Epsom for the past 3 years.

Iryna’s final collection is inspired by artist Robert Morris who focuses primarily on sculptures. His work has inspired Iryna to use extremely thick fabric which is the key aspect to her final garments, this being felt. Iryna has also introduced leather and silk to her pieces. Robert Morris works with square pieces, again reflected in Iryna’s work. ,Iryna’s final garments are all created from square shaped fabrics, she manipulates the squares using seams, slicing and draping. Iryna is incorporating turquoise with pinks and reds for her final pieces. Once Iryna has illustrated her creations on paper, she mocks up every piece on a doll size mannequin, before creating them out of calico for samples.

Text | Emma Whiston | emmawhiston.portfoliobox.netPhotography | Jess Curphy | jesscurphey.co.uk/

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Claire Huish

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Grace Butler

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Designer & Stylist | gracebutler.carbonmade.com

Grace studied Fashion Design at the University of Bath Spa amd graduated in 2011. Her final collection was loosely based around menswear, tailoring and the book titled "Super Surfaces" portraying shapes and textures made out of paper and metal.

Art Director & Text | Emma Whiston | emmawhiston.portfoliobox.netPhotographers | Andre & Cuthbertson | cargocollective.com/andreandcuthbertsonModel | Amelia @Ecplise | eclipsemodelmanagement.com/women/?mode=details&model_id=98

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Louise Bennetts

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Designer | louisebennettscollection.tumblr.com

Final year Fashion Design student at Edinburgh College of Art, 2012.

Louise’s interests lie in the way in which products we use, wear and inhabit come to be; the lives they go on to have, and the relationships they forge with those who use them. Inspired by the fragmented building facades of Siena, which tell a story of change, adaptation and evolution. Louise researched the ways in which we join, seam and assemble clothing, and used transparent fabrics, so that the process behind the final garment is made evident. Therefore her illustration style relies on a clean sense of line combined with textural collage and a similar sense of layering. The garments change when worn in differing combinations - the wearer always has the freedom to deconstruct and reassemble the outfits. Louise seeks to build clothes that are in a state of flux - not complete until assembled, layered and animated by their wearer.

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Text | Emma Whiston

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Lydia Garde

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Vest | Shao Yen

WINTER SPICE

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Fashion Photographer | lydiagarde.com/Text | Emma Whiston

Lydia Garde is a 22 years old fashion photographer in her final year studying BA (Hons) Commercial Photography at The Arts University College Bournemouth. Her photographic visual approach is sophisticated, elegant and natural and channels her creative energy into producing striking, colourful and beautiful imagery. Lydia's passion for contemporary dance, experience and knowledge of movement is a big influence on her work, and is interested in literature, culture and customs, which has added spice and vibrancy to her fashion imagery. Exploring other cultures is a constant source of inspiration for her and this will follow through in her new work.

The series below was shot exclusively for Apple Juice Magazine back in November. http://www.applejuiceonline.com/. The original inspiration for the shoot was exploring and celebrating the different cultures within Britain. The shoot is referencing this celebration of cultures in a more subtle manner by taking a colourful and cultural aesthetic in this Winter shoot, with a lovely blues, reds and gold metallics running through the series. Something to warm your cockles on the cold days back in winter.

Photography | Lydia GardeStyling | Fay LamchaiprasertMake-up | Joey ChoyHair | Michiko YoshidaPhotography Assistant | Charlotte SalterStyling Assistant | Rain OgilvieModels | Inge @ Storm and Katrina Lilwall

The majority of the garments are young designers from University of the Arts London.

Vest | Sicgmone Kludje

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Outfit and head piece | Carly Graham

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Outfit and head piece | Carly Graham

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Blue | Lulu Liu Hat | Vesna Pesic

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Blue | Lulu Liu Hat | Vesna Pesic

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Eve Tokens

Designer | evetokens.carbonmade.com

Eve is in her final year studying Fashion Design at the University for the Creatives Arts, Epsom.

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Eve has travelled to multiple countries across the world. She started her journey of fashion design in one of the world’s fashion capitals, New York. Whilst Eve was studying black and white photography within printing techniques during her stay with a friend in New York, she realised her friend was obsessed with clothes. Eve traipsed around the shops in the footsteps of her friend, she began to wonder about the construction of the garments from a technical perspective. From this, Eve went on to take night classes in fashion design before coming back to England to enroll on to weekend and evening classes in fashion drawing and introduction to fashion design at Central St Martins. After taking a class in experimental and exploratitive pattern cutting, Eve decided to take fashion design as a degree. Eve is a three dimensional designer; working from draping

and contouring in order to get her inspiration to draw.Eve’s final collection is based around gangsters after she watched TV drama ‘The Wire’. Eve carried on this theme throughout the film and music industry by watching films such as the Goodfellas and City of God. Eve listens to grime music to keep her in the process of making. Her silhouettes have been inspired by outerwear and specially sports wear. Eve’s techniques are mainly weaving and bonding. Eve has incorporated one of her influences on her journeys by having Caribbean references throughout her work, seen through her weaving and lace, based on their architecture and table clothes. Eve’s aesthetics are reflected through bonding using latex and PVC layered upon lace, moulded together to create gaps for light to pass through. Eve weaves leather in to the designs.

Eve hopes to go on to work for her role models such as Celine and Balenciaga, doing pattern cutting straight after university to gain experience to achieve her long term plan of having her own line and business.

Text & Photography | Emma Whiston | emmawhiston.portfoliobox.net

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Eve’s fabric swatches

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Eve’s final pieces preview

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Veronica Kadi

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Veronica is currently a final year Fashion Design student at Nottingham Trent University.

Inspired by the 1904 Italian opera of Madame Butterfly, these two illustrations take inspiration from the merging of different cultures. Her research explores the Japanese kimono and its references to silhouette and floral print, Italy’s stunning masquerade carnivals, the bold silhouette of the 1900 Italian woman and the delicacy of the iris flower. Each illustration is reflective of the stark contrast of the two cultures. East meets West. A fusion of national identities.

The Past Historic possesses a more authentic quality, delicate leather flowers and leaves appear to bloom and envelop the upper body through the technique of appliqué. The leather embossed belt incorporates the signature floral print, gathering in the dress, which is floor length and encapsulates the 1900 feminine silhouette.

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The Future Historic piece captures the origins of the era, through the combination of contrasting fabrics, finishes and silhouette. The jacket is decorated with a repeated pattern of loose embroidery combined with tiny scattered beading on heavy weight navy wool. It holds the body, structure and elegance of the Japanese kimono. Underneath, an explosion of print enlivens the dress: her own watercolour floral painting is the inspiration for her signature print. Grace and movement are captured through its lightness, representing the fragile petals of the Iris flower.

The hand finished details of her illustrations are reflected in her design ethos.

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Fashion Photographer | The Arts University College Bournemouth.

Hand made garments, celebrating the beauty of the craft.

Photographer | Daniela Stevens |danielastevens.com Photography Assistant | Mitch Payne | mitchpaynephotography.com Models @ Oxygen Model Management | Faye & Gillian oxygenmodels.com Collection and styling | Lucy Starling Hair and Makeup | Hannah Phillips hannahphillipsmakeupartist.com

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Anya Edwards

Anya is in her final year studying Fashion Design at the University for the Creatives Arts, Epsom.

Anya studied textiles at GCSE and A Level and has been inspired by art from an early age. With her mum and grandma working in the creative industry, Anya has been brought up in the art world, therefore she knew Fashion Design was her calling.

Her feminine signature looks are coming through for her final collection, seen through frills and

trims. Christian Lacroix's big bows and detailing have inspired her to stay within this aesthetic and create pieces with a post-modern twist. A trip to the Fan Museum in London inspired Anya to base her collection around 1940's umbrellas. Seen through lace over-laying, Anya has incorporated the theme alongside the modern day umbrella. Anya uses tweed to represent the old feeling, yet incorporates PVC and latex to bring it back to today. With the pinking sheared finishes, Anya's collection looks to be a hit at Graduate Fashion Week.

Text & Photography | Emma Whiston | emmawhiston.portfoliobox.net

83crueBack Cover | Photography | Andre & Cuthbertson. Outfit | Gemma Williams

ecru magazine

Documents

london fashion week

graduate fashion week

aspects of fashion

creative fashion industry

fashion design graduates

designers of blow presents

lydia garde50

grace butler30