I've also started university now. It seems like only yesterday that I was dreaming to study fashion journalism when I was about 13 or 14. Who'd of thought I'd actually get here?!
The course is a bit different to how I'd envisioned it to be. It's a lot more serious than I had imagined. Not so 'fluffy', which is actually a welcome surprise. It's not just the function of journalism and how it works but also the stuff behind it, culture and history from the last 150 years play a big part in our studies this term. I was always interested in history at school but was put off by the most horrid teacher so I am very pleased to have my passion reignited.
Unfortunately, I didn't get a chance to go to London Fashion Week but we had the most amazing guest lecture the week after. Fashion designer Jeff Garner, who, for the second time, showed at LFW this September, made the short trip to give a guest lecture at UCA. To say he is an inspiration is an understatement. I can say with some certainty that almost every woman in that lecture theatre fell a little bit in love with him after two hours. His brand is called Prophetik and it thrives on the key values they have. Namely, (to coin a cliched word) eco-friendly. All his fabrics are sourced ethically and all dyes are grown in his garden. The packaging they use is minimal and almost all biodegradable and his garments are designed and produced in Tenesee, USA by women who were previously involved in clothing production until factories moved to the far east. Although his outgoings are high, he manages to sell the garments for less than another designer in the same proposed price bracket, meaning he isn't producing fashion that is inaccessible to the mass market.
He doesn't watch tv, or pay attention to the media. He eats only granola and yoghurt, three times a day and in his spare time, rides his horses in the country which surrounds his home. So, where does he get his inspiration from? Nature. He observes the world around him, and doesn't focus on what most of us get sucked into but really pays attention to what happens naturally. The dark forest was his muse for A/W 2010.
S/S 2011 catwalk at LFW
He arrived wearing all his own designs. A cotton shirt, hemp waist coat and jacket and hemp trousers tucked into flaking leather riding boots that he's owned since the age of 12.
His designs are ethereal. They definitely have an air of Amish simplicity and are very reflective of the traditional dress of a south American farmer and his wife. Somehow he manages to take these theories and transport them to the catwalk in a very modern, wearable and present form.
I can confidently say that Jeff Garner is a designer to keep an eye on. His ideas and values are both traditional and revolutionary and I'm sure we are to see many more great things from him. From my own point of view, I defy anyone to sit in his presence and not feel a sense of comfort but also enlightenment and not walk away with intrigue and a feeling of real interest towards to idea of ethical fashion.
Maria
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