that collide, culminating in a new idea

when I was studying for my master's... I’d come up here regularly to trawl through the collections

it’s so big and I do dream about just being shut inside

as a designer... I feel a certain responsibility, furthering people's imagination and also challenging their views of what fashion is

yes I have made frequent reference to nature in my work

how that started?

I came across some beautiful images of birds in the collections...

it was their structural qualities... the feathers... it triggered a train of thought...

and led to the creation of the whole collection

medieval influences? I suppose so

I came up to an exhibition here...

and there were these incredibly elaborate manuscripts, beautiful things in the margins, birds everywhere... quite abstract

maybe I do have a fascination with them? I did even consider using birdsong in my shows, there’s loads of recordings in the sound archives...

and looking back, I have used black swan feathers in lots of my designs

I was anxious about starting my own company...

very confident about my design capabilities...

but I had no idea about business planning or how to actually sell my work... and with huge support from the Business and IP Centre...

you know, attending the workshops, I quickly became quite savvy about protecting my designs...

and met my Finance Director here actually

I guess being in a space that is inspiring and has a vibe to it, and has all of these things to discover, it's incredibly exciting

real inspiration