Ethically Designed & Made in Britain
12-06-2019
Newsletter 12th June 2019
Dear all,
Belle – Anca Balasica
You saw it here first, the very latest Belle to join the Belles of London collective, machinist Anca Balasica, has just launched her glamorous capsule collection on the Belles website. Anca describes her collection as “feminine, sophisticated and elegant with a pinch of Jackie O’ inspiration!” Shop Anca’s collection here.
The Best Dressed Robot You Have Ever Seen
When designer Zoe Corsellis came to Fashion Enter with a collection of designs for Ai-Da, the world’s very first robot artist, how could we not get involved? Ai-Da, named after the mathematician and computer pioneer Ada Lovelace, was unveiled at a press conference at the University of Oxford last Wednesday 5th June 2019 and the story has gone global. Ai-Da’s first solo show consists of eight drawings, 20 paintings, four sculptures and two video works. Remarkably the show has already sold out with over a million pounds worth of artworks sold.
Aiden Mellor, Ai-Da’s inventor and gallery owner approached his friend, fashion designer Zoe Corsellis, to create a range of outfits for Ai-Da to wear. From creating art to speaking at interviews Zoe designed five dresses for Ai-Da that feature the designers signature retro style and panelling details. With ethical manufacturing and fabric sustainability at the forefront of her brand Zoe asked Fashion Enter to manufacture the garments.
CEO of Fashion Enter Jenny Holloway said: “It’s actually been a smooth process. OK, the dimensions are different but we’ve got the pattern cutters and specialist staff to be able to cater with that. It’s actually fitted together really well and she’s going to be the best dressed robot you have ever seen.”
Watch the Zoe Corsellis YouTube video here.
Fashion Studio & Factory Open Day 20th June
On Thursday 20th June 2019 we invite those looking for ethical, Made in Britain sampling and production services to come and visit our Fashion Studio and Factory.
The agenda will commence as follows:
10.30am Intro and welcome from CEO Jenny Holloway
10.45am ‘What is an ethical factory’ talk and PowerPoint presentation from Jenny
11.15am Factory & Fashion Studio tour with Production Director Caroline Ash
11.45am ‘Services the Fashion Studio provides’ from Fashion Studio Manager Jenny Beth Golding
12.00pm Summary and Q&A.
Places on the Open Day are limited please email Chantelle: chantelle@fashion-enter.com to request a place.
6 Reasons to Visit Fashion SVP and Students Are Invited
- It’s FREE TO ATTEND!
- Save travel miles and costs: we’ve brought over 120 manufacturers from more than 20 countries to London: you can compare and contrast the offerings of these hand-picked companies in one convenient London location.
- Quality and choice guaranteed: our senior sourcing team has selected every manufacturer at the show, ensuring superb choice across all categories and offering a comprehensive range of services, from full service to QC.
- Check out some career prospects: the team from FashionJobs.com will be on hand to discuss opportunities across the fashion and beauty sectors: your students can get a real insight in to career opportunities and openings
- Anticipate new trends: with special features on the fashion production cycle, sustainability and new design talent, Fashion SVP celebrates new fashion directions.
6 Deepen knowledge and expertise: our popular Fashion Station series returns, offering expert voices; plus you can tap in to the exceptional knowledge of teams from Fashion Capital/Enter in our Consultation Corner.
FashionSVP takes place at London Olympia on 25th and 26th June 2019 click here to register.
Gloria Fashions Tailoring As Seen on the Boudicca Crew
Fred Olsen Cruise Lines worked alongside The Royal British Legion and Arena Travel for a very special D-Day ‘Voyage of Remembrance’. Sailing on board Boudicca, up to 300 D-Day veterans, accompanied by their carers, visited ports on both sides of the English Channel for a series of commemorative events. Meanwhile, the Fred Olsen crew were doing ‘Made in Britain’ proud with their quality British made jackets, trousers and bell-boy hats – made right here by the Gloria Fashions tailoring team at Fashion Enter’s Factory in North London.
David King runs the family business Gloria Fashions he said: “As seen on TV our uniforms made for Fred Olsen were showcased for the D Day ‘Voyage of Remembrance’ on the cruise ship Boudicca. It is great to see our garments on TV and the images right shows the exacting standards required for quality British made jackets and trousers.
“We are experiencing a growth of orders at the moment so it’s exciting times ahead and we’re looking forward to moving into the new Tailoring Unit next door.”
Gerber Advanced Course Feedback
Last Saturday learners completed the final instalment of their Follow-On Gerber Advanced course. Taught by Gerber tutor Ben Cooper, the learners got into the nitty-gritty depths of the Pattern Design and Explorer.
Feedback included: “Great course to learn in depth the functions we use everyday and manage to fix problems we stumble upon. Really like the fact the tutor has a real work life apart from tutoring to ensure we know when things/errors happen why they do and how/when to use the fixer up.” – Tania 10 out of 10
“I have learned lots about working with Gerber VII and refreshed my Gerber knowledge after quite some time. We had a nice, experienced teacher, working in the industry. I had a great time learning and understanding the latest version.” – Chamil
Fashion Retail Academy Visit for a Factory Tour
Yesterday, 12th June, we had two groups from the Fashion Retail Academy take a tour of the factory and learn all about each stage of fashion production. One Buying and Merchandising student commented: “I have learnt the in’s and outs of how a factory works and the regulations that the workers and staff follow. I’ve also learnt how a buyer and a factory all work together. I truly enjoyed this tour and learnt a lot. Thank-you.
Staff News
Congratulations to Jenni, Development Director and her partner James. Jenni gave birth to a beautiful baby boy on the 7th June and both mum and baby are doing well. Also apologies to Pattern cutter Dymphna Harrison for last week’s error, Dymphna is also currently on maternity leave.
Meeting with David Jones and Barbara Burton – ‘BehindBras’
Fashion mentoring stalwart David Jones has over 45-years of industry experience, both CEO Jenny Holloway and Editor JoJo Iles worked with David at the London Fashion Forum and on the launch of FashionCapital twenty-years ago! Today he still actively advises and supports start-up fashion businesses and he is involved with ‘BehindBras’ along with founder Barbara Burton. BehindBras empowers serving and former women prisoners to build skills through meaningful and aspirational careers. The aim is help them to break free from inequality through financial independence in order to become self-sufficient and build successful lives. Jenny met with Barbara and David today and is involved with this inspiring initiative by providing a range of training options. More on this soon.
Masterclasses Coming Soon
TR PatternCutting Taster 29th June
Claudette Joseph has been using and teaching TR pattern cutting for seven years, she is a five times TR Master and a three times TR Super Master, she holds regular classes and workshops in this highly creative form of pattern cutting. Claudette regularly teaches this popular taster course at the Fashion Technology Academy, the next three-hour taster session will take place on Saturday 29th June from 10am – 1pm.
Gerber AccuMark Digital Pattern Making Course for Beginners 7th, 14th and 21st September
The Gerber AccuMark For Beginners is a 15-hour course that will provide you with the skills required for the workplace and within the industry. Led by two leading industry experts who have more than 30-years Gerber experience between them. It is a three-day course, which takes place on Saturday’s from 10am – 3pm.
Advanced 2-Day Gerber Course12th and 19th October
Take on as much or as little as you like with our new Follow-On Gerber course. Get into the nitty-gritty depths of the Pattern Design and Explorer and/or continue with your own journey of drafting and amending patterns.
Fabric Swatch of the Week
Today we have picked out this bold stripe jersey in navy, red and off-white. With a touch of elastane this fabric is suitable for all types of garments. Available now at the FCFabricStudio at £4.30 a metre.
This Week on FashionCapital.co.uk
Another year, another amazing instalment of Graduate Fashion Week! Katie Farley reports on the champions of this year’s Gala Catwalk Awards in this week’s Fashion Fix.
This week CEO Jenny Holloway attended the EMPOL Make UK – The Manufacturers’ Organisation ‘Skills Update’ meeting. The meeting revealed the latest survey statistics on the Apprenticeship Levy and T-Levels.
And a new report investigates what retailers are doing in terms of being sustainable and how they can (and should) help consumers, by providing an honest assessment of major brands.
And Finally…
Check out the award-winning ‘Sewn Together’ African and Caribbean commemorative quilts organised by Sonja Camara of 4U2Mag involving various members of the Haringey community, including Paula Balfe founder of Pin Kushion (and student at the Stitching Academy Level 2), on show now at Bruce Castle Museum.
